


The Life of the Painfully Oblivious

by Kaiten



Category: B.A.P
Genre: High School AU, M/M, Some Cursing, Yongguk is bad at names, background daejae, basically fluff, oblivious Yongguk
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-05-01
Updated: 2017-11-06
Packaged: 2018-06-05 17:50:43
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 13
Words: 27,476
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6715138
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Kaiten/pseuds/Kaiten
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Yongguk likes naps. Staying up all night chatting with his friends online and studying, he naps through the day in school. Which has worked out fine for him so far. He doesn't want to interact with his classmates. But there's this one guy who always wears a hoodie, who seems to get in trouble with some of the other classmates quite often. He can't help but worry about him. At the same time someone is messing up his things and leaving notes of apology. It's all very confusing</p><p>I am so bad at summaries.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is an odd story and I have no idea why, but it happened. Also, there's so little BangHim and it hurts my shipper heart. So I had to put something out there.

The first time it happens, is on a sunny day. It's what they would find out to be the last day of summer warmth and Yongguk is peacefully napping at his desk. The sun shines directly on his eyes, but while it would irritate most, it just made him sleepier. Napping in the sun is one of his favorite pastimes. So when someone yelled loudly, jolting him awake, his face held a grumpy expression. He looks around for the source of the yelling and finds the hoodie-guy surrounded by some tough looking guys. They were almost all from his class, but Yongguk hadn't bothered learning their names. Hoodie-guy was a special case of having earned a nickname. But that was because Yongguk had never seen him without a hoodie, hood up and everything.  
The guys surrounding hoodie-guy looked tensed up and one of them were muttering something that sounded like threats. In his just awaken state, Yongguk couldn't hear what though. Hoodie-guy looked relaxed, no tenseness in his shoulders. The guys crowded in on hoodie-guy slowly, still saying something, that he was slowly getting as he woke up properly.  
It was all very cliché. 'Stay out of our way', 'be careful and we won't hurt you' and so on and so forth. They had hoodie-guy completely surrounded and no way to escape. Yet he just raised an eyebrow and said nothing. The bell rang, the boys backed off, the rest of the class came back and the teacher entered. Turning to the front again, Yongguk sighs. He missed part of his nap because of someone yelling.

The second time it happens, Yongguk is once again awoken from a nice nap across his desk. It's not in the warm summer sun, but the dim fall sun, which isn't as nice but nice nonetheless. It's almost a repeat from the first time, except Yongguk didn't sleep very well last night, so he doesn't catch the meaning of any of the words said. Might as well be the same, seeing as the guys surrounding hoodie-guy don't look very creative.  
The bell rings, the boys back off, his classmates return, the teacher arrives. Yongguk turns back to the board and pays attention for a whole five minutes, before settling his head in his arms and falls asleep.

The third time it happens, it's early morning. Yongguk is sleepy as he is not a morning person. The reason for him not being a morning person is because he doesn't go to sleep before very late, so it's actually his own fault. He is pushed by the crowd into some guy who he recognizes from his class and promptly drops his wake up book and favorite notebook on the floor.  
The guy looks angry, while Yongguk mutters an apology and bends down to collect his things before anyone steps on them. Looking up for a moment, he finds the boy seething and pulling back his hand as if he was going to punch him. Before his true intentions are revealed though, hoodie-guy bumps into him, sending him a few steps backwards. The guy looks thoroughly pissed now. Yongguk gets his fingers on his notebook and stands up. He doesn't know if he should do something or just leave.  
In the end he ends up leaving, seeing as the boy he bumped into was busy with hoodie-guy, who just stood there looking bored.

Same day, after gym class, he finds his clothes bundled up in his locker and not how he left them. He also finds a small note saying 'sorry about the mess' on top of his clothes. It's all very weird, because who would bundle his clothes up in a ball and then say sorry about it? Looking around, he finds no one, because everyone has already left and he was the only one the teacher had assigned to help put the equipment back in its place.  
He wonders about the incident for the rest of the day. Wondering about who would do something like that and then apologize? Was someone out to weird him out? Because it worked. He didn't sleep at all for the rest of the day. He also didn't pay attention in class, but that wasn't new, even though he tried.

Next day the guy he had bumped into was sporting a black eye and kept muttering 'I'll get him'. Yongguk concluded very quickly that the boy had been in a fight and probably lost. So he concentrated on the teacher's words and wrote down notes.  
The fourth time it happens, Yongguk is awakened by someone walking into his desk. Though when he has opened his eyes and assessed the situation properly, he reevaluates what happened. The guys that are always surrounding hoodie-guy have surrounded him once again. But this time around Yongguk''s desk. The close proximity of hoodie-guy probably means that he was pushed and he wonders if hoodie-guy is being bullied.  
Yet it doesn't seem like it, because hoodie-guy is calm and isn't tense at all. The boys surrounding him and Yongguk are tense however, their expressions angry. Yongguk can't help but tense a little up, despite their glares not directed at him. The string of insults and curses are also not directed at him.  
“You can't protect him forever!” the biggest guy of the bunch sneered and Yongguk got confused. He had been pondering whether it really was bullying, but hoodie-guy was taking it like it was nothing.  
When hoodie-guy said nothing in return, didn't even flinch, the boys went away. Hoodie-guy turned around and looked at Yongguk and he saw the others face properly for the first time. There wasn't a big revelation, just him seeing his classmates face properly for the first time. He noted everything about the boy's face that remained passive and seemed to study him in return. The guy had a handsome face. After the shortest and longest five seconds of his life, hoodie-guy turned away and went back to his seat.  
Yongguk put his head in his arms and went back to sleep, wondering if hoodie-guy was being bullied and whether or not he should report it.

A couple of days later, Yongguk falls asleep in the last class. He had miraculously stayed awake all day, but now he was exhausted, so he turned to sleep. The only reason he woke up was because of someone poking his arms. Slowly he raised himself from his slumber to find hoodie-guy sitting in front of him. Yongguk blinked a couple of times, to see if it was real.  
It was.  
Hoodie-guy was staring at him with a weird look in his eyes. Before Yongguk could say anything though, hoodie-guy was out of the seat and out of the empty classroom with a bag slung over his shoulder. It was odd, really. He didn't expect anyone to wake him, seeing as he had no friends in school. Yet hoodie-guy did. Did this mean something?  
Yongguk brushed off the thought. He was over analyzing. Maybe hoodie-guy was simply a nice person. The world wasn't void of them, just because Yongguk didn't have any friends in school. Though that was because it didn't interest him. He had enough in the friends he had online from different fansites. They liked to discuss different works of art, books and music. From his experience, the usual high schooler didn't interest themselves in such stuff. So he didn't bother with it.  
When he came home and wanted to take out his homework, he found it not as he had left it. The order was totally different. Pulling out everything, he found a small post-it note. 'Sorry about the mess' it said, in the same handwriting as the one from the gym. Yongguk found himself wondering why someone would take all his stuff and rearrange it, before leaving a note saying sorry.  
Was someone looking for something? Was that why someone had messed up his clothes as well? But if they were, why didn't they just ask him? Though no one talked to him, he didn't have one of those scary reputations at school. Did he? No. People didn't go around him in the hallways, like they were scared of him. They went right at him and bumped into him with no apologies on their tongues.  
For a moment he wondered if hoodie-guy was the one. But he pushed it aside again. What would someone whom he had never spoken to, want with him? It might be someone else, it might be something else entirely. Who knew? It wasn't something to worry about.

Next week was a horrible week. To his great disappointment, his online friends were busy and barely had time to chat. Though as the great friends they were, they told him to just message them if it was something important. But this wasn't the first time this had happened, so besides being slightly gloomy, nothing was wrong.  
What made it horrible was the things that happened in school. Someone had dumped the contents of his bag all over the floor while he was asleep. It was somehow embarrassing and angering at the same time. He could feel an uncomfortable feeling in his chest as he picked up his stuff, while his classmates snickered. At the same time he wanted hunt whoever it was down and give them a piece of his mind. But seeing as he didn't know who it was, he didn't know where to start.  
Then when they had gym, the teacher asked him to stay so they could talk about his lack of participation. After the uncomfortable conversation was over, Yongguk found his clothes soaking wet in the showers. Going back to the gym teacher, he explained his situation and was allowed to use the dryer the kitchens used to dry tablecloths. In the meanwhile, he took a nap, lulled to sleep by the rumble of the old dryer.  
It wasn't a bad nap, but he kept being plagued by who would do something like that and why him suddenly. He wondered if seeing as hoodie-guy had been gone for the week, the guys from his class with their matching jackets had switched to him. It was an odd thought though. Why would they have something against him? He had never done anything to anyone.  
On Friday there was a surge of relief though. Last day of school in this horrible week. As he passed the jackets, as he had now named them because of the matching jackets, they ripped his notebook out of his hands, making it the worst day of the week.  
“What do we have here? Is it your diary?” the biggest of them all asked as the others chuckled. Yongguk frowned at them. The way they behaved was very out of line. He held out his hand, motioning for the guy to give it back. Instead of giving it back, they laughed and the guy opened it on a random page.  
“Dear diary!” the guy yelled loudly and people started stopping and looking with interest. Yongguk frowned further, seeing as there was no such line in his notebook. “I am heartbroken! Himchan has left me! He realized what a pathetic human being I am!” the guy kept going. A part of Yongguk wondered who this Himchan was, while the other part was slowly becoming angry.  
“Give it back,” he ordered the guy, inwardly shredding him to pieces.  
“No,” the guy smirked. “What are ya gonna do about it?”  
Yongguk frowned further while considering his next move. He could punch the guy, but the other jackets were there as well, outnumbering him. He could also go get a teacher, but who knew what they would do with his notebook while he wasn't looking. The third option would be to be threatening and take it back. It probably wouldn't work with how the jackets were thrilled about the situation.  
Raising himself to his full height, he glared at the jacket. “Give. It. Back,” he told him with his deepest most threatening voice. There was a flicker of something in the jacket's eyes and Yongguk took that as his opportunity to snatch his notebook. With it safely back in his hands, he glared once more and stomped down the hallway.  
“We'll get you, you little shit!” one of the jackets yelled at him, but Yongguk took no mind. He had his favorite notebook back. What they had against him bothered him throughout the weekend though.

The next week hoodie-guy was back and things returned to normal. Yongguk was left alone, but those strange things still happened, where someone messed up his things and apologized after. Hoodie-guy seemed to get bullied more and more often by the jackets. Why he hadn't gone to the teachers yet, surprised Yongguk, along with the way hoodie-guy seemed to take it all. He never showed any sign of discomfort or anything other than boredom.  
He still didn't know if it was bullying. He had never experienced someone getting bullied. According to his friends, that was because he slept through most of the day and didn't pay attention to his surroundings. So he decided he would take contact to hoodie-guy in order to ask. If the guy was being bullied, then he needed help. That was what his friends had told him.  
Opportunity knocked on the door one Thursday afternoon where he had fallen asleep in his last class once more. When he woke up by someone poking him, he found hoodie-guy in front of him as he had before. Yongguk fought himself out of sleep, as he could remember that he had to ask the other something, though he couldn't remember what.  
It wasn't until hoodie-guy had stood up and was on his way out that he remembered what it was.  
“Hey wait,” he called for the guy, who stopped up and turned around, looking at him like he had grown extra head. “Uhm, can I ask you something?”  
Hoodie-guy raised an eyebrow, but nodded after a few seconds.  
“Are you being bullied?” Yongguk asked.  
Hoodie-guy's eyebrow disappeared under his black fringe. Then he started laughing, like Yongguk had just told a funny joke. It was a kind of hoarse laugh. Like it was coming from the stomach and his throat hasn't been used in a while.  
“What?” Yongguk asked confused, while hoodie-guy seemed to try to pull himself together.  
“You're cute,” hoodie-guy told him in a deep voice that Yongguk recognized from class, but had never bothered checking out who it belonged to. With that hoodie-guy turned around and left Yongguk wondering why the hell he was cute now. He had literally only asked if the other was being bullied out of concern and then the other laughs and calls him cute. Was Yongguk even cute? He hadn't heard his mother call him cute since he was a kid. Now she just called him handsome.  
He needed professional help with this. With that in mind, he decided he should call and talk to his closest friends this evening. They would help him figure this mess out.


	2. Chapter 2

“So what you're saying is, he started laughing when you asked him?” his friend Youngjae asked, flipping his blonde hair out of the way.  
Yongguk nodded.  
“And he called you cute?” Youngjae asked.  
Yongguk nodded once more.  
“I don't know what to make of that honestly,” the boy said thoughtfully while rubbing his chin. Yongguk had called him and two other friends on skype to get their advice.  
“Are you sure there's not something you're missing? Some trivial detail?” Youngjae questioned.  
Daehyun, another friend, snorted. “Of course there's something missing! But Yongguk here wouldn't know, seeing as he spends his days sleeping,” he chuckled.  
“I do not!” Yongguk protested.  
“You kinda do,” Youngjae agreed, while Daehyun and Hyosung nodded.  
“You've always just awoken from a nap when we write to you during the day,” Hyosung smiled brilliantly. Okay, Yongguk had to give them that and he huffed in defeat.  
“Is there something else you didn't tell us?” Hyosung asked.  
Yongguk racked his brains for something that could be related to it, but couldn't find anything. The only odd thing he could come up with was the mystery person messing his things up and saying sorry afterwards. But that didn't have anything to do with hoodie-guy and the possible bullying going on.  
“No,” he answered and shook his head.  
“You could always just ask him why,” Daehyun suggested.  
“Wouldn't that be too direct though?” Youngjae countered.  
“How could that be too direct?” Daehyun raised an eyebrow. “You don't suggest he tries the subtle art of interesting small talk, because I doubt he'll be able to do it.”  
“No, you're right. He's useless when it comes to that. But he's also bad at asking directly,” Youngjae nodded.  
“Hey!” Yongguk exclaimed. “I'm sitting right here!”  
The three of them grinned at him in amusement.  
“I say you should go ask, as Daehyun suggested,” Hyosung said.  
“That's right. I'm brilliant,” Daehyun flipped his black fringe to the side and winked.  
“Urgh, you're making me feel nauseous,” Youngjae gagged jokingly.  
“Oh baby cheeks, you love this brilliant piece of brain,” the black haired boy smirked.  
“In your dreams, assface,” Youngjae replied with a disgusted expression.  
“That wasn't what you said when I was fucking you into your mattress last week,” Daehyun grinned undeterred.   
“Okaaaaaay,” Hyosung interrupted. “Can we move on? I don't want the details of your sex life.”  
“Oh I know you want the details of how I-”  
“Nope! Nope!” Hyosung interrupted, stuck her fingers in her ears and promptly started singing 'lalalala'.  
Yongguk facepalmed. His friends were so crude and sometimes you wouldn't guess they had actual brains somewhere in there. When the 'lalala's subsided and Youngjae's 'finally' was sighed, Yongguk looked up.  
“So, can we get back to me being called cute when I ask someone if they're bullied?” he asked his friends.  
“Well, haven't we already settled that matter? You just ask him,” Daehyun told him. The other two nodded.  
“Yeah, but how?” Yongguk questioned. He really wasn't good at this sort of stuff. He didn't know if he was to say something first or go straight at the question. The only place he was somewhat sure of himself was when writing (which was how he had met the three), and even then people said he sounded awkward at first.  
“Just go straight for it,” Youngjae told him “Go hard or go home or whatever.”  
“Oh baby, I love it when you talk dirty,” Daehyun grinned with a suggestive wink. Yongguk buried his face in his palm again.  
“Shut it, assface,” Youngjae's voice snapped in annoyance.  
Looking up, he found the two of them grinning through the screen, while Hyosung resembled Yongguk a second ago.  
“Why am I friends with you guys?” Hyosung sighed.  
“Because no one else could keep up with you ranting about Shakespeare and then Trudi Canavan,” Youngjae smiled.  
“Urgh, you're right,” the girl agreed with a sigh. “Fuck my life.”  
Yongguk chuckled while Daehyun let out an evil laugh together with Youngjae. Before anything more could be said, he heard his mother yell that dinner was ready.  
“Well I have to go,” he told them. “Dinner's ready.”  
With that he bid them goodbye and promised to tell them what hoodie-guy answered.

The next day, Yongguk tried to stay awake the entire day. He needed to jump at the chance of talking with hoodie-guy. So he somehow got out of bed on time, instead of last minute and came to school at a decent time. To his disappointment, hoodie-guy wasn't there. He didn't get there before ten minutes before the bell rang, which was five minutes before Yongguk usually got there.  
Throughout the day, he tried talk himself into approaching hoodie-guy, but he chickened out every time. He would make a pep-talk to himself in his head and turn around to get out of his chair and talk to the guy. As soon as he looked at the guy doodling in his notebook though, he turned back to the front and wondered why socialization was so hard. It wasn't even because the guy seemed like a hard to approach guy. He seemed nice enough, seeing as he had woken Yongguk up after class a couple of times.  
Luck struck him in the very last class. His history teacher wanted them to take on a part of the second world war. So they were to pair up or make small groups. This was his chance. Turning around, he searched for hoodie-guy's eyes. When he caught them he made what he hoped to be a sign for suggesting they team up with his hand. Hoodie-guy seemed to get the point, because he nodded.  
And then hoodie-guy was sitting next to him, asking what part he deemed most interesting.  
“Do you have anything against talking about the youth and what they were taught in Germany?” Yongguk asked and hoodie-guy shook his head in answer. With that, Yongguk went up to their teacher and told him of their choice. On his way back, he started panicking about how to ask hoodie-guy why he had called him cute yesterday. It wasn't that he didn't know how to talk when he knew a person, but he just got so nervous and awkward when he didn't.  
Getting back to his desk, he sat down and looked at hoodie-guy. How was he to initiate this conversation?  
“Do you have time this weekend? I know we have time to make the project here at school, but I'd rather not rush,” hoodie-guy asked.  
“Uh, yeah. Sure,” Yongguk answered with a nod.  
“Great, where do you want to work? Your place, the library, somewhere else?” hoodie-guy continued.  
“Uh, we can just work at my place,” he suggested slowly and hoodie-guy nodded and gave him his phone. Yongguk looked at the other in confusion. Why did the other give him his phone? Wasn't that kind of odd? What would he do with it?  
“Put your number in,” hoodie-guy told him after a second, which lightened the situation in Yongguk's head.  
“Oh. Right,” he nodded and put his number in. When he had handed the phone back, hoodie-guy messed with it for a moment and then Yongguk's pocket vibrated.  
“I sent you a text with my number,” hoodie-guy told him and pocketed his own phone.  
For the rest of class, they planned out what they wanted to point out in the presentation. Though hoodie-guy was no expert in it, he actually seemed to have read the material they had been assigned as homework. So he contributed with useful things. It wasn't that Yongguk was an expert, but he had an interest in history, so he had read about the second world war many times.  
The last bell rang, people scurried out of class, but Yongguk took his time. This might be the time to ask hoodie-guy about what he had meant yesterday. But when everyone was out of the class except the two of them, hoodie-guy took off with a smile and a 'see you tomorrow'.  
Sighing to himself, Yongguk put his favorite notebook in his backpack and went home. He would try again tomorrow.

Yongguk was pacing back and forth in the living room. Hoodie-guy had texted he would be there in a few minutes. For some odd reason, he was nervous about having him over. Maybe it was because it was the first time someone from school would see where he lived? Or maybe it was because it was the first time in ages he had someone over? Maybe it was a combination of the two and the fact that hoodie-guy felt oddly comfortable and nice. Like he could be a friend. Which was an entirely new sensation for Yongguk, who usually chatted with people online for months before deeming them a friend.  
The doorbell rang and pulled him out of his thoughts. Rushing to the door, he took a deep breath, before opening it. Hoodie-guy stood there, wearing another usual black hoodie and a small smile.  
“Hi,” he greeted the other who returned his greeting. Yongguk stepped back to let the other in. When hoodie-guy had taken off his shoes, Yongguk led him into the living room. He wasn't going to take him to his room, because it was messy and it felt a tad bit too private. Hoodie-guy took off his backpack and started pulling out books from it.  
“So I borrowed some books that my mother said would help,” hoodie-guy told him as he put the ninth book on the table.  
“You went to the library yesterday?” Yongguk asked.  
“No,” hoodie-guy shook his head. “These are my mom's books. She's a historian,” he continued explaining.  
“Oh, cool,” Yongguk replied, quietly wondering if hoodie-guy was one of those kids who didn't like their parents' profession. He would be overjoyed if his mother or father had been a historian. Then they would know what he was talking about when he tried to discuss the finer details.  
“Yeah,” the other agreed, but didn't delve further into the subject. “Should we get reading? She told me the chapters that discuss the subject.”  
Yongguk nodded and hoodie-guy pulled out a note from his pocket. It had titles and chapter numbers and titles on it. Without another word, they each took a book and started reading.  
The books were really fascinating. They discussed different points that had led to the result of the strong belief the young had in Hitler. It also showed the importance of what kind of upbringing children had. Children were easier to mold into an opinion if you knew what you did. It was kind of scary actually.  
It wasn't until Yongguk's stomach growled that he looked up again from inhaling the words in the books. He looked up to find hoodie-guy taking notes while reading. Looking at the clock that hung on the wall, he found almost two hours had passed. His stomach growled again, loudly like he was constipated. Hoodie-guy looked up and gave him an amused smile.  
“Do you want something to eat?” Yongguk asked feeling embarrassed. Hoodie-guy nodded. With that, he put away the book in his hands and went to the kitchen. The other followed him and he opened the fridge to see if there were any leftovers they could heat and eat. There were none.  
“So there's bread and there's ramen,” he offered the other. That was as far as his cooking skills went.  
“Ramen sounds good,” hoodie-guy smiled wryly.  
“Great,” Yongguk nodded and got out a pot and some ramen. As the water heated, he turned around to look at hoodie-guy. This seemed like the most opportune moment to ask him why he had called him cute. But he was stressing on how to do it. Should they talk about something else first? Should he go straight for it? How did you do this?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> To be totally honest, I didn't know where to end this chapter, but it ended up being there. Obviously.  
> Either way, I'll update around next weekend. Now I'll go outside to enjoy the sun, after the cold snow that was here last week (or was it the week before that? Either way, it was cold last week).


	3. Chapter 3

“You look like you want to say something, spit it out,” hoodie-guy encouraged him with a small smile, taking Yongguk by surprise.  
“I-uh, I...” Yongguk fumbled with his words.  
“Don't worry, I don't bite,” the other smiled softly.  
He chuckled nervously, not quite knowing why he was nervous. “Well I was wondering why you called me cute the other day? Bullying is a serious matter and I think you should tell a teacher if you're getting bullied,” Yongguk told the other.  
Hoodie-guy seemed to fight against a smile. And then small snorts escaped him, followed by a chuckle and a happy laughter. Once again he was laughing like Yongguk had told the joke of the year. It was a happy laughter, the laughter of someone who was genuinely amused. It made himself smile a little bit, even though he didn't know what was going on.  
“I'm sorry,” hoodie-guy apologized in between his laughter and visibly tried to stop himself. With a brilliant smile on his face, that seemed to light up the room, he finally stopped laughing. Yongguk tried to think of some way to ask 'why', but he couldn't get the word out as hoodie-guy let out small chuckles.  
“I'm really sorry, but you have no idea, do you?” hoodie-guy asked.  
“What?” Yongguk asked back, confused.  
“I'm not getting bullied, no one has been bothering me,” the other told him.  
“But what about the jackets?” Yongguk asked, still confused. If the jackets weren't bothering him, what were they doing then? Was it all a game? No, it couldn't be that.  
“The jackets?” hoodie-guy questioned, with a raised eyebrow.  
Yongguk realized what he had said. “Oh, you know, the guys who wear the same kind of jackets?” he explained slowly and awkwardly, hoping the other wouldn't figure out he didn't know their names. His friends had told him that usually you figured out the names of your classmates. If not on purpose, then because their names are mentioned all the time in class.  
“Oh, Sunghoon and his lackeys?” hoodie-guy asked.  
He nodded in reply, hoping it really was this Sunghoon guy, whoever that was.  
“Do you not realize I'm not their target?” hoodie-guy questioned.  
“But they keep ganging up on you and say things like 'we'll get you' and stuff,” Yongguk replied, feeling totally and utterly confused.  
“Yeah, because I prevent them from doing something too bad to their actual target,” hoodie-guy smiled gently.  
“Oh. Well that's awfully nice of you,” he nodded. Wow. Hoodie-guy seemed to be a really nice person. To do something like that for someone else. He had read and heard that helping a bullied person was a feat in itself, seeing as most people are scared to help. Group mentality and pressure played a big role in it.  
“Thank you,” hoodie-guy smiled oddly. Like his thoughts were somewhere else.  
“Who is it?” Yongguk asked and hoodie-guy focused in on him in the blink of an eye. “Sorry, I don't know if that's okay to ask. I just asked. I'm curious. Sorry,” he rambled for a moment, before stopping himself.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled. “You really have no idea, do you? You're awfully oblivious,” he smiled, showing he didn't mean it with malice. “I take it I've done well then.”  
“Uhm..?”  
“The person I've been... helping, doesn't know I've been helping,” hoodie-guy told him, still smiling brightly and looked at him like he should know by now.  
“Oh. Uhm. So who is it? Unless you just tried to avoid the question?” Yongguk asked once again.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled again. “You'll figure it out,” he said, closing the conversation. Taking the hint, he nodded and went back to cooking.  
He finished the ramen in silence. As they ate, hoodie-guy started up the conversation again. They talked about music. One of Yongguk's big passions and apparently hoodie-guy's too. It was weird how easy the conversation flowed as they talked about their favorite musicians and bands. He didn't feel that awkward as he usually did with new people. It was... odd.  
After they finished, they went back to the books and studied for a few hours. Every once in a while they would tell the other of what they found and then hoodie-guy's phone went off. After a short conversation with someone, he told him he needed to go home. He packed his stuff, Yongguk led him to the door and then he was gone.  
Going back to the living room, he collected his notes and went to his room. With a quick look at his clock, he saw he only had an hour left before his parents would be home. Starting up his computer, he went on skype, hoping his friends would be online. They were.  
Making a group call, he greeted them one by one as they answered.  
“So did you ask?” Daehyun asked eagerly, getting right to the point.  
“Yes,” Yongguk nodded.  
“And?”  
“Apparently he isn't getting bullied,” Yongguk told them.  
“Oh that's good,” Hyosung nodded, while the other two nodded as well.  
“Yeah,” he agreed. “Apparently he is helping someone who is getting bullied. He won't say who though.”  
“Maybe it's a private thing?” Hyosung said, not sounding sure at all.  
“Fuck that, I want to know,” Youngjae waved her off eagerly. “Tell me everything he said, and we'll figure out a profile or something, then Yongguk can figure it out Monday!”  
“Youngjae, I don't think-” Yongguk started.  
“Oh shush, I want to know,” Youngjae cut him off. “And maybe you can help this hoodie-guy and give some hope to the poor person who is being bullied.”  
“Fine, but only because I want to help,” he gave in after a moments thought. He didn’t think he would succeed, but he could try.  
“So what did he say?” Hyosung asked eagerly.  
“Start from the beginning and say everything, not just the stuff you think is important,” Daehyun told him.  
“Well, when I asked he started laughing again. And then he asked if I really had no idea,” Yongguk started.  
“Which you obviously didn’t,” Daehyun nodded.  
Yongguk shot him a small glare through the camera for interrupting. “He then said that no one has been bullying him, but he was helping someone who was getting bullied. I told him that was nice of him and he thanked me,” he continued. “Then I asked who it was, and he asked if I really didn’t know and told me I was oblivious.”  
“Well he’s got that right,” Daehyun smirked, while Youngjae was wearing a weird expression and Hyosung looked thoughtful.  
“He then told me that the person he’s been helping doesn’t know he’s helping,” Yongguk finished.  
“That’s all?” Hyosung asked, while Youngjae was still looking awfully deep in thought.  
“Well he said something about him having done well after he said I was oblivious, but that’s it,” he shrugged. He didn’t know how they would figure out anything from what he had told them, but the ways of human minds had always been beyond him.  
Youngjae facepalmed. “Oh my god,” he said.  
“What did you figure out, sweet cheeks?” Daehyun asked eagerly, but Youngjae didn’t look up nor answer.  
“Oh my god,” Hyosung copied Youngjae and facepalmed too.  
“What?” Yongguk asked.  
“Yeah, what?” Daehyun repeated after him.  
“The person hoodie-guy is helping, is oblivious if he doesn’t know he’s being helped from bullying,” Youngjae said, not making sense. It seemed to make sense to Daehyun though, who looked like a light had brightened in his mind.  
“What?” Yongguk asked once more.  
“Yongguk, what happened the week hoodie-guy was gone?” Hyosung asked him, emerging from her palm.  
“Weird stuff, why?”  
“Because if you think just a little bit, you’ll know,” Daehyun told him.  
Yongguk thought back to that week, even though he’d rather not. That was a bad week. Someone or some people had been doing weird stuff to him for some unknown reason. But they had stopped after that week.  
“Remember that hoodie-guy has been helping someone oblivious from being bullied. But the person who he is helping, doesn’t know,” Youngjae helped him along, but it just confused Yongguk more. What did those two things have to do with each other?  
“What does that have to do with my bad week?” he asked them, only to receive three slaps in return as they all facepalmed at the same time.  
“What does it have to with it?!” Daehyun exclaimed. “Ev-”  
“No Daehyun,” Youngjae interrupted. “Let him figure it out.”  
“Let me figure out what?” Yongguk asked, feeling left in the dark.  
“You’ll see,” Hyosung smiled gently.  
“I set forth a challenge for you, Bang Yongguk,” Youngjae smiled. Yongguk raised an eyebrow in question. “Don’t sleep through the day for an entire week and notice things.”  
“But, that’s kind of impossible,” he told them.  
“I don’t care. You go to bed early and you try,” Youngjae told him.  
“If you still can’t figure it out at the end of the week, we’ll tell you,” Hyosung promised and though the other two hesitated, they nodded in agreement.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So exams are coming up, so I won't be able to write a lot the next month or so. I have one last already written chapter, but that's it. So there might be a pause in updates (I hate that this comes so soon), but that's life. Yay exams...  
> I will probably write a little bit on this while I take breaks from my studying, but I probably won't write a lot, hence the silence that might happen from my side. Either way, have a nice day and/or night. This person right here is going to bed (to read fanfics until I fall asleep).


	4. Chapter 4

He failed miserably Monday. Before he knew it he was in dreamland and suddenly the day was over. Hoodie-guy woke him up with a smile and left, before Yongguk could say anything. When he realized he had wasted a day he facepalmed. And when he got home, he found his notes not as he left them once more, with a small note. Hyosung scolded him for sleeping so deeply that evening, as she was the only one online, before she went on to talk about Trudi Canavan’s new book, which was ‘absolutely brilliant’. She then went on talking about how ‘you have to read this series’ and ‘fuck why is the next book not out yet’ and ‘it’s just not fair how she leaves off with a cliffhanger’. And Yongguk promised he would read them as soon as the last book was out, because he was of the sensible kind that didn’t read anything before all the books were out. He had learned that lesson from Patrick Rothfuss.  
Tuesday he tried to stay awake. He really did. But they had math, and though he didn’t have anything against math, the teacher was a bore. When he talked, it was on a monotone note all the way through and then suddenly Yongguk was napping. The rest of the day was spent in a blur that he wouldn’t be able to remember, even if he tried. So he had to report back failure to Youngjae that evening.  
The next three days didn’t get better. He ended up napping a little bit too much the rest of the days of the week, which led up to him sitting in front of his computer looking sheepishly into the camera. On his screen were his three very unimpressed friends, their faces almost copies, with their right eyebrows raised in disapproval. It would have been very funny, if it wasn’t for the actual purity of their feelings that they expressed.  
Youngjae sighed heavily. “Did you even try?” he asked and rubbed his head like he had a headache.  
“Yes!” Yongguk answered immediately. “I just couldn’t help it. I was so tired and the teachers are really boring.”  
“Yongguk,” Daehyun started.  
“I know,” he interrupted before his friend could get further. “I know I should go to bed earlier, and I did! I just couldn’t fall asleep.”  
“Yongguk,” Daehyun said again.  
“Turning around your sleep pattern is really hard!” Yongguk defended himself.  
“I say he doesn’t get to know yet, raise your hand in favor,” Hyosung suggested and Yongguk saw all three of them raise their hands.  
“Wait, but,” he started.  
“No buts,” Youngjae interrupted.  
“But,” Yongguk protested.  
“No buts,” Youngjae repeated.  
“Yeah, no butts for you,” Daehyun grinned. “Only for me. And a fine one it is,” he continued, winking at them.  
“Oh shut it, you have no ass,” Hyosung laughed.  
“I have a little!” Daehyun protested. “But it wasn’t that one I was talking about. I was talking about the gorgeous butt Youngjae baby carries around.”  
Hyosung facepalmed and Yongguk shook his head.  
“My butt isn’t yours!” Youngjae exclaimed.  
“I’ve claimed it as mine though,” Daehyun grinned.  
“It’s still mine!” Youngjae protested.  
“Nope,” Daehyun shook his head. “Go check it out in a mirror and you’ll see that I’ve claimed it.”  
“Okaaay,” Hyosung interrupted them. “I think we’ve heard enough of that conversation.”  
Daehyun grinned and Youngjae glared.  
“Thank you,” Yongguk thanked Hyosung, who smiled in return.  
“Back to the matter at hand though,” Youngjae started, with Daehyun throwing in a hopeful ‘my dick?’, “I’m thinking we’ll give you another week. Get a clue and we’ll tell you, or we’re postponing it once more.”  
“I second that,” Hyosung nodded.  
“Anything my baby says,” Daehyun nodded with a smile.  
“But,” Yongguk started.  
“Yongguk, you can’t just go the easy way around this,” Hyosung told him. “Try to use your brain for once.”  
“Hey! I use my brain all the time!” he protested.  
“Yes, but you rarely use it for social matters nor for things like this,” Hyosung smiled softly. “It’s like it simply turns off and you turn into an oblivious idiot.”  
“Well aren’t you nice,” Yongguk grumbled to himself.  
“It’s true though,” Youngjae said and Daehyun nodded along.  
“Gee, thanks,” he said with sarcasm thick in his voice.  
“Don’t sulk, think about that art museum they’re opening in your city,” Hyosung laughed.  
Yongguk couldn’t help but smile. They were opening a new museum just twenty minutes away with bus. He looked forward to going there. It was a shame his friends couldn’t come, but seeing as they lived in other places that were too far away, it couldn’t work out unless it was vacation.  
“Now about my history assignment, could you guys help?” Daehyun smiled widely, with his most pitiful puppy eyes.

Saturday morning, Yongguk was woken up by his mother before she was off to work. She shook his shoulder while saying his name.  
“Whazzat?” Yongguk mumbled, after identifying the body next to him as his mother.  
“You have a guest,” she told him, looking a little like she was judging him for something. The small smile on her lips, told him she was also amused by the situation.  
“A what?” Yongguk asked in confusion. What was a guest?  
“A guest, Yongguk,” his mother told him again. “There’s a person in the living room who has come here to see you,” she continued, spelling it out for him.  
“Oh,” he said, finally getting the concept.  
“And you’re lying here sleeping!”  
“Yes?”  
“So, get up and put on some clothes! He’s your guest!” his mother exclaimed, her tone slightly exasperated.  
“Okay,” he sighed and closed his eyes again. He had a guest.  
Wait. He had a guest! Who was visiting him on a Saturday morning? Sitting up in bed he looked around in panic.  
“Mom, who’s my guest?” he asked as he looked around his room for clean clothes. He knew three of the piles were dirty, but what about the last two?  
“Himchan,” his mother answered. Yongguk looked at her in confusion.  
“Who?”  
“You don’t know him?”  
“Uhm… I don’t know?” he answered sheepishly.  
His mother chuckled. “He’s your height, has bunny teeth, black hair that you can only see a little of because of his hoodie,” she listed up.  
“Ohhh, I know who he is,” he interrupted. It was hoodie-guy.  
“You should start learning your friend’s names,” his mother told him and stood up. “Also, get dressed, you don’t want to keep your guest waiting.”  
“Oh yeah, shit,” he said as he jumped out of bed and picked up a shirt from one of the piles of clothes that might be clean, and smelled it. It didn’t stink, that was the clean pile.  
“Remember to brush your teeth,” his mother told him as he struggled to put on a pair of jeans and she went out. With clothes on, he brushed a hand through his hair and hoped it looked okay. With that he went to the living room where hoodie-guy was sitting in the couch.  
“Hi,” Yongguk greeted him a bit nervously.  
“Hey,” hoodie-guy smiled back.  
“Sorry about that, I forgot to set up my alarm last night,” he apologized to the other.  
“It’s 3 o’clock, when did you even go to sleep?” the other asked, amusement clear.  
“Uhm, at 8,” he answered.  
“That early in the evening?”  
“Uh, no. In the morning,” Yongguk answered sheepishly while scratching the back of his neck. Hoodie-guy let out a joyful laughter.  
“I’m not even that surprised,” hoodie-guy told him between laughs. “I’m guessing you don’t go that much earlier to sleep on school days, with the way you sleep the day away?”  
“Not really,” he admitted to the other.  
“How do you keep up with school?”  
“I study at night. I don’t like being awake during the day, the sun makes me sleepy,” Yongguk told hoodie-guy who nodded, smile still present on his lips.  
“Should we eat before we start then?” hoodie-guy asked.  
“Nah, I’m fine,” Yongguk waved him off and the other nodded and pulled a backpack up from the floor.  
“I have the books with me again, so we can look through them again,” he told Yongguk as he dug out the books.  
“Great,” Yongguk nodded and went over to sit next to the other.  
They worked in silence for a while, reading and noting down things in their notebooks. It was comfortable like last time and Yongguk almost forgot the other was there. There were moments where they would share a detail and it was just really comfortable. He was surprised he found it that easy with the other.  
When they had read everything in the books, they switched notes and read through them. Hoodie-guy had a pretty handwriting. It was a lot prettier than the one he had. But somehow hoodie-guy could read most of what Yongguk had written. It was only a couple of times that he needed help to figure out what word was scribbled.  
Hoodie-guy had a good humor as well. There were a lot of little comments throughout everything he had noted down. Most of them held a rather dry tone in them, that made Yongguk smile to himself. Some of it probably shouldn’t be mentioned in their project, but it was enjoyable all the same. Hoodie-guy seemed like an increasingly nice and funny person. And comfortable. It was really weird.  
“Okay, so before we start discussing what we should include and what not, I think we should get something to eat,” hoodie-guy said.  
Yongguk looked up from the paper in his hands. “Yeah sure, you hungry?” he asked.  
“Yes, but not as much as you,” hoodie-guy told him and Yongguk raised an eyebrow in question. “Your stomach has been growling for the past fifteen minutes without you noticing,” the other explained.  
Yongguk could feel a slight blush warming his cheeks. “Oh,” he said.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled. “You are oblivious to many things, aren’t you?” he smiled softly, the words fond instead of mocking.  
“Well, I just don’t notice some things when I’m occupied with other more important things,” Yongguk tried to explain.  
“I figured you were a fan of history last time, but it seems like you’re interested in politics as well from what I’ve read on these papers,” hoodie-guy said and held up the papers.  
“More like interested the country is lead in a good direction instead of ending in a government ruled by corruption,” Yongguk said.  
“That’s also a good reason to involve yourself in politics,” hoodie-guy nodded. “I’ll have to admit I don’t follow a lot of politics, but someone like you could make a difference in the world someday.”  
Yongguk could feel a warmth spread throughout his entire body at the thoughtful comment. That’s what he wanted to do. Make a difference. A difference that led down a path of diversity and open mindsets and less corruption. It was a rather hard goal to reach, but he was going to try.  
“I, on the other hand, only want to change one thing right now,” hoodie-guy smiled. “And that’s to change my stomach from being hungry to being full, and yours too.”  
Yongguk laughed. “Our fridge is full, so that won’t be a problem,” he told the other.

That night (midnight and later), as he talked to his friends, he retold his day with hoodie-guy. He had really enjoyed his time with the other as they worked on the project, so naturally he wanted to tell someone about it. And not his parents as they had gone to bed as soon as they got home from work.  
“Youngjae, Hyosung,” Daehyun stage whispered, interrupting Yongguk. “I smell something.”  
“What?” Hyosung asked, looking like she was expecting the worst. Yongguk was just a bit irritated that he was interrupted again, but it was fine really. His friends were like that, when he started a long monologue.  
“It’s a sweet smell,” Daehyun said as he sniffed around.  
“Is your father stress baking again?” Youngjae asked, looking interested. “If so, I’m coming over tomorrow.”  
“No, no, that’s not it,” Daehyun shook his head. “I think it’s coming from Yongguk.”  
“What? You can’t smell through a screen?” Yongguk replied, feeling very confused.  
“Yes, yes, it’s from Yongguk,” Daehyun nodded to himself. “A sweet, crushing smell.”  
Youngjae looked like he got what was going on and started sniffing around as well. “Yeah, I get what you mean. It’s definitely from Yongguk,” he nodded.  
Now Yongguk felt really confused and Hyosung looked like she was lost as well.  
“Hyosung, it’s a crushing sweet, lovely smell,” Youngjae said, as if that explained everything.  
“Ohhh,” Hyosung said as she smiled, obviously getting what was going on. Yongguk was still confused.  
“What?” he asked his friends, still confused.  
“Ahh, the young,” Hyosung smiled smugly. “So innocent.”  
“What?” he asked again.  
“You’ll know when you’re older,” Youngjae told him with a grin.  
“Guys, what?” he asked once more, still confused.  
“Don’t worry Yongguk, you’ll figure it out eventually,” Daehyun laughed. “Nothing gets past you.”  
The two others burst out laughing as Yongguk scowled at them. He needed better friends.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry about the long wait. To be honest, I forgot to update, then I was away from my computer and then I forgot again. Repeatedly. So sorry...  
> hopefully things will go better now. (:


	5. Chapter 5

Sunday, Yongguk had remembered to put on his alarm, so it wasn’t a surprise when hoodie-guy turned up at the door. Instead he bid his mother goodbye properly, instead of just noticing she had already gone like yesterday. He had even showered before hoodie-guy came over, so he didn’t smell like bed. In short, he felt prepared. If he half ran to the front door when the bell chimed, it wasn’t of importance.  
They started working immediately. With a paper to write that was to be handed in the following Friday and a presentation to make for the week after that, they weren’t in a hurry. As hoodie-guy had said ‘working at home took the stress off of them’. They had loads of time. And they worked really well together. Yongguk was kind of regretting not working together with the other guy before, as he was really nice. And he knew how to talk and fill the silences, so Yongguk didn’t feel as awkward.  
It was just really nice being in hoodie-guy’s company.  
“Let’s get something to eat, it’s been almost three hours,” hoodie-guy said after they finished yet another paragraph.  
“Yeah sure,” Yongguk nodded and stood up. “Ramen?”  
“How could I say no to that?” hoodie-guy smiled brilliantly. “But do you have any vegetables we could add?”  
“Uh, yeah.”  
“Great, I’ve heard they should be good for you,” hoodie-guy winked. Yongguk couldn’t help but let out a small chuckle and his heart beat a little bit faster.  
Hoodie-guy started talking about his horrible ‘spinach-teeth incident’, and how he had sworn he wouldn’t eat it again. Ever. Yongguk listened with a smile and let out a laugh every once in a while, as he made their ramen.  
When two steaming bowls of ramen stood in front of them, hoodie-guy stayed quiet for a moment to eat.  
“I must say, your ramen is good,” hoodie-guy complimented him. “Do you know how to cook anything else?”  
“Uhm,” Yongguk felt his face turn warm. No. No, he didn’t know how to make anything else really. It was a major failure really, but he was always so busy with other things. So he didn’t have time for learning how to cook much.  
“I’m guessing that’s either you don’t or you’re secretly a master chef,” hoodie-guy grinned with a twinkle in his eyes. “No offense, but I’d be guessing on the first.”  
“Yeah, you’d be right,” Yongguk smiled shyly.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled. “Well, not to brag, but I’m rather good at cooking. So I was thinking I could cook us something next time,” he suggested.  
He felt his lips stretch in a wide smile. “Of course,” he nodded.  
“We’ll have more time next weekend anyways, as all we have to do is finish up the presentation,” hoodie-guy smiled.  
Yongguk’s heart gave a little skip. Hoodie-guy didn’t just want to get out of there when they finished their work. He was going to cook for Yongguk!  
Wait, why was he getting so excited? No matter, hoodie-guy was nice and he was the closest thing to a friend he had outside of the internet. Yongguk paused mid-chew. He considered hoodie-guy somewhat like a friend now. That was weird. It never went this fast.  
“What?” hoodie-guy asked, looking at him with worry.  
“Nothing, I just thought of something,” Yongguk waved the other off. He considered hoodie-guy as a friend and he didn’t know his name! Why was he so bad at names? How could he get his name without making it obvious? People usually took it personal when you couldn’t remember their name. Especially when you consider them friends. Fuck.  
“Okay, ‘cause you looked rather mortified right there,” hoodie-guy said, his worry not completely erased from his eyes.  
“It’s just that I have to do my laundry soon,” Yongguk came up with the first excuse he could think of. Which was true. He had to wash his clothes soon, or he would run out of clean clothes.  
Hoodie-guy laughed happily. “Yes, well that is indeed a horror in itself.”  
Yongguk couldn’t help but smile back. Hoodie-guy was really nice. He just had to figure out what his name was, without clueing the other in.

The bell rang and Yongguk was startled out of his slumber. He had only just fallen asleep a few minutes before according to clock, which was why the bell was able to get him out of his sleep. Groaning to himself, he looked around to find that most of his classmates were clearing out of the room. Hoodie-guy and two girls were the only ones left.  
Hoodie-guy smiled at him as they made eye contact and Yongguk smiled back, before turning back around. He had gone to bed early yesterday. Well, the fact that he went to bed yesterday was a feat in itself. At 11:30pm he had laid himself in his bed and tried to fall asleep. Which ended up with him tossing and turning for hours, before he decided he might as well read something educational. He didn’t remember falling asleep after that.  
Either way, he was practically a zombie now, but he was forcing himself to stay awake. He wanted to figure out who hoodie-guy was protecting from the jackets. It was just really hard and he really, really wanted to sleep.  
Then he was napping away again.  
When he woke up, it was to a poke in the arm. Looking up with bleary eyes, he found hoodie-guy sitting in the chair in front of him with a fond smile. He had a really nice smile.  
“Good morning,” hoodie-guy smiled.  
Yongguk groaned in answer.  
“I hope you slept well, ‘cause you started snoring the last few minutes of class,” hoodie-guy grinned happily.  
“I what?”  
“Snored.”  
“Shit.”  
“Like an old man.”  
Yongguk groaned to himself in embarrassment.  
“It was loud,” hoodie-guy chuckled. “But it was also great entertainment, so I’m not complaining.”  
“Oops,” he said and scratched the back of his neck. He usually didn’t snore unless he was beyond tired.  
Hoodie-guy’s eyes refocused onto his hair.  
“What?” he asked.  
“Nothing you just,” hoodie-guy said and reached up. A second later, his hand retreated with a piece of paper. “I guess I missed that one,” he mumbled just loud enough for Yongguk to hear.  
“Missed one?” Yongguk asked in confusion.  
“It’s nothing,” hoodie-guy smiled once more and stood up. “I have to go home.”  
“Okay,” Yongguk nodded and tried to keep the disappointment out of his voice.  
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” the other smiled fondly at him and went out of the classroom.

When he came home and looked at himself in the bathroom mirror, he found another piece of paper that had gotten lost in his hair. What had happened? He didn’t remember any small paper pieces on the table that he could have turned in. He also found that his things in his bag were once again not as he left them and a small note of apology. Staring at the paper, he tried to remember where he had seen the writing before. It seemed familiar, and not just from the previous apology notes.  
Realization hit him like a truck. This was hoodie-guy’s writing, wasn’t it?  
Hurrying over to the stack of papers that he had from left from their project, he found one of the papers hoodie-guy had written on. It was exactly the same writing.  
What?  
Putting the paper back, he went over to his computer to turn it on. This was weird. Why would hoodie-guy mess up his things and then apologize with notes? Why didn’t he just tell him? What was he looking for? Why didn’t he ask for what he was looking for? This was all too weird.  
With skype up and running, he found that Daehyun was online and called him. It took him a long time to answer. Yongguk was about to give up, when he finally answered. Daehyun and Youngjae appeared on the screen, Daehyun’s hair messy and Youngjae’s neck was red.  
“Did I interrupt something?” Yongguk asked.  
“Yup,” Daehyun answered with a small pout, while Youngjae grinned happily.  
“Should I leave you to it?” he asked.  
“No, what’s up?” Youngjae replied, still grinning happily.  
“Uhm, I think hoodie-guy is the one messing up my things,” Yongguk said, still not sure if he should just let them get back to doing their thing.  
“What?” Youngjae and Daehyun asked at the same time. They both wore the same expressions of confusion. It was kind of funny, but Yongguk was still in a state of confusion.  
“Well, you know those notes that I found apologizing for the mess?” he began and the two nodded. “I found another one today and I found out the writing is the same as hoodie-guy’s.”  
“Why would he mess up your things and apologize though?” Youngjae asked.  
“Yeah, you two talk,” Daehyun nodded.  
“I don’t know either, I think he’s looking for something,” Yongguk expressed his theory.  
“Like what?” Youngjae asked.  
“That’s what I don’t know,” Yongguk frowned.  
“But if he was looking for something, why wouldn’t he just ask you for it? The two of you are friendly,” Youngjae asked, looking like he knew something Yongguk didn’t.  
“I don’t know, that’s why I’m so confused,” he said. He really was confused. Really confused.  
“How about you ask him?” Daehyun suggested.  
“Yeah, I think that’d be a good idea,” Youngjae nodded.  
Yongguk hummed to himself. He didn’t know if he wanted to. Right now he felt rather… betrayed. But why, he didn’t know.  
“Do it Yongguk,” Daehyun said softly, as if reading his thoughts. “It can’t hurt and it might clear some things up.”  
Yongguk looked up at the screen at the two of them. “Okay, I’ll do it,” he nodded.  
“Good! Tell us about what you get out of it tomorrow,” Youngjae smiled. “And not to be rude, we’ll be going again. Call if you need anything, okay.”  
Yongguk smiled. “Okay.” He knew what they were going to get up to.  
“Good, I’m going to be a real sport and be really friendly to my sweetheart now,” Daehyun grinned and Yongguk facepalmed.  
“Yeah, yeah, just go,” he said, trying to erase the pictures in his mind.  
“See you,” Youngjae sang as Daehyun cackled beside him and they hung up. Yongguk looked at the note next to his computer. He would ask tomorrow.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so bad at updating. I'm really sorry. I'm working on getting better at updating. Hope you enjoyed it either way. ^^


	6. Chapter 6

The next morning, Yongguk tried to stay awake once more. He really tried. However, when the lunch bell rang and someone bumped into his table, he found he had failed. All around him, classmates were filing out of the classroom. Looking around, he found hoodie-guy at his desk writing or doodling something on a piece of paper.  
When everyone but them were out of the room, Yongguk stood up and walked over to his kind-of-friend. He could ask why hoodie-guy had messed his things up. Sitting down in front of him, he found that hoodie-guy wasn’t writing or doodling. The paper was a music sheet that he was filling out with notes.  
“Is that your own composition?” Yongguk asked, completely forgetting why he was there in the first place.  
Hoodie-guy looked up. “Well kind of, but not really,” he answered.  
“How does that make sense?”  
“Well, I started out plotting down the beginning of a piece, but then I started improvising,” hoodie-guy explained. “Or writing down what I would be improvising if I had a piano in front of me.”  
“Wauw.”  
“It’s not that impressive,” hoodie-guy smiled with a shrug. However, it really was.  
“I think it is,” Yongguk countered. “Not anyone can do that.”  
“Maybe, but what I’ve written down might not sound as good as it does in my head,” hoodie-guy said.  
“It’s a start though.”  
Hoodie-guy smiled. “True.”  
Yongguk sat in silence for a while.  
“Did you want anything?” hoodie-guy asked.  
“Uhm, yeah,” Yongguk said slowly, wondering how he should ask. He didn't know how to ask. What should he say? Something like 'hey, are you the person messing up my stuff' or maybe 'why are you messing up my stuff, I thought we were friends'. He didn't know. Both options sounded so accusing. How did people do this?  
“You wanna say it, or should I just wait another two minutes?” hoodie-guy asked.  
Yongguk felt his face heat up. “Oh, sorry,” he apologized.  
“It's okay, I'll wait, I was just curious whether or not you needed more time,” hoodie-guy smiled softly.  
He felt his heart skip a beat and he looked down at the table. “Uhm, I was wondering,” he started slowly. He just had to ask now. It was just words. Words were easy. “Whether or not you'd like to come over for dinner?” he asked and internally screamed to the heavens. Why were words so hard when it came to other human beings?  
“Dinner?” hoodie-guy replied. He looked up at the other, to find a wide smile on his face and nodded.  
“Yeah, dinner,” he confirmed, looking down again. “My parents are out tonight,” he said, which was the truth, but not what he was supposed to say.  
“Sure.”  
Yongguk's head snapped up. Hoodie-guy was still smiling. “Really?”  
“Yeah, that would be nice,” hoodie-guy nodded.  
“Great,” Yongguk squeaked and coughed. “Great,” he repeated in his normal voice.  
“I'll be over at around 6, if that's okay? I need to get some stuff done at home first,” hoodie-guy said.  
“Yeah, sure, perfect,” Yongguk nodded. “Uhm, I'll see you then,” he said and stood up. Hoodie-guy gave him a blinding smile in return, and he could feel himself blush as he went back to his seat.  
What had he done?

“I've done something stupid,” Yongguk told his three friends on skype. “And now I don't know what to cook.”  
“Cook?” Hyosung asked confused, while Youngjae and Daehyun looked just as confused.  
“You haven't lit the kitchen on fire or something?” Daehyun asked.  
“No, no, no,” Yongguk shook his head, “I invited hoodie-guy over for dinner.”  
“What!?” three voices yelled through his computer, all looking confused and surprised.  
“It was an accident!” he defended himself. “I was supposed to ask him why he was messing up my things and then leaving apology notes, but I didn't know how to say it!”  
“So you asked him over for dinner?” Youngjae asked. “How does that make sense?”  
“Yeah, how did you come from asking about the mess of your bag to dinner?” Hyosung questioned.  
“I don't know!” Yongguk answered. He might be beginning to freak out, because what should he serve hoodie-guy? He didn't know how to cook anything but ramen!  
Daehyun began chuckling. “It must be a subconscious thing,” he grinned.  
Hyosung started chuckling too. “Yeah, you wanted him over for dinner, man,” she smiled while wiggling her eyebrows.  
“Hyosung!” Yongguk exclaimed at her insinuation.  
“I didn't say anything, it's all in your mind,” Hyosung grinned.  
“Hyosung, did you not get enough sleep?” Youngjae asked.  
“Maybe,” she answered airily, suddenly looking at the ceiling.  
“That explains that,” Youngjae nodded. “She does have a point though.”  
“Ha!” Hyosung exclaimed in victory.  
“Can we get back to me not knowing how to cook anything but ramen?” Yongguk asked tiredly.  
“I'll send over one of my dad's recipes,” Daehyun told him. “Then you can get down to business after dinner,” he continued and winked.  
“There will be no business of that kind after!” Yongguk groaned. He really needed better friends.  
“I meant that you could ask him why he's messing up your stuff,” Daehyun corrected him. “Where is your mind today, Yongguk?” he grinned.  
“You did not,” he grumbled.  
“He could, you might just have misunderstood. Miscommunication is something that happens often,” Youngjae smiled wickedly.  
“Yeah, your mind is in the gutter today,” Hyosung added.  
“It's not!” Yongguk protested.  
“It is,” Daehyun and Youngjae said at the same time.  
Hyosung smiled happily, “See.”  
Yongguk buried his face in his hand. What had he ever done to deserve this?  
“Anyways, I gotta go,” Daehyun said. “We're eating dinner early today.”  
“Will you be alone later?” Youngjae asked.  
“You know it, baby,” Daehyun replied and Yongguk could practically hear the wink.  
“I'll see you later then,” Youngjae answered, smile evident in his voice. Yongguk looked up. Daehyun and Youngjae were grinning widely, so he had a pretty good idea on what was going to happen.  
“Yongguk, I'll send the recipe in like 5 minutes,” Daehyun told him. “I'll see you later,” he said in parting and hung up.  
“I'll go eat early dinner as well,” Youngjae smiled. “Bye bye,” he waved and he hung up too.  
“Soo, it's just you and I now,” Hyosung sang happily. “But you should probably go see what's in your fridge and get ready for a magical evening of dinner and desert.”  
“Desert?” Yongguk replied. “Do I have to get desert too?”  
“No worries, just serve yourself,” Hyosung cackled. “But I'm going to go too, so you have time to get ready.”  
“No, wait!”  
“Bye!” she sang and then she hung up too. Yongguk cursed to himself. They were no help at all. Okay, maybe Daehyun was going to send a recipe, and maybe Hyosung had a good idea with asking hoodie-guy about the thing, but other than that. No help at all.  
A ding from his phone shook him out of his misery and he found a message from Daehyun with a picture of a recipe. He locked the phone and stood up, when another ding signaled a message. 'Good luck' it said. Yongguk sighed and went to the kitchen. He had to do his best, so that hoodie-guy wouldn't get food poisoning.

The doorbell rang, just as he was to cut a piece of chicken in two, to see if it was ready. Lowering the heat, he abandoned his task and went to the door. His heart was beating excitedly in his chest and he was nervous. Why was he nervous, it was just hoodie-guy? Either way, he looked into the mirror in the hallway, and hurriedly tried to fix his hair from frustrated haystack to artfully messy. It worked somewhat. With that he opened the door.  
“Hi, I have a package for a Bang Yongguk,” said the postman that stood there instead of hoodie-guy.  
“Uh, yeah, that's me,” he answered. The postman handed him the package and the small device where he had to sign. He signed horridly, as one does on those small screens, wished the postman a good evening and closed the door again.  
So that wasn't hoodie-guy. It was a late working postman. However, he did get a mysterious small package. Going back to the kitchen, he found a pair of scissors and opened it. It was those CD's he had ordered a couple of weeks back in the middle of the night. He had forgotten about them, so it was a nice surprise. Someone knocked on the door again and the nerves came rushing back to him. Hurriedly, he put the CD's back down on the kitchen table, and rushed to the door once more. His hair still looked like it did before.  
“Hi,” hoodie-guy greeted him when he opened the door.  
“Hi,” he replied and stepped back so the other could come in.  
“That doesn't smell like ramen,” hoodie-guy said as they entered the living room.  
“I tried something else,” Yongguk smiled nervously. “I just hope we don't get food poisoning,” he continued nervously.  
“I'm sure we won't, it smells good,” hoodie-guy smiled at him. He was really trusting him on this. Yongguk really hoped he wouldn't let the other down.  
“I’m just going to check on the food,” he said and entered the kitchen. Hoodie-guy followed him and sat down at the kitchen table.  
“What’s this?” hoodie-guy asked, and Yongguk turned his head to see hoodie-guy with the CD’s in his hand.  
“Oh, I just got those,” Yongguk answered.  
“From the postman I saw?”  
“Yeah,” Yongguk nodded and cut the piece of chicken. It wasn’t raw. Hopefully it wasn’t dry either.  
“These are really good,” hoodie-guy said. “Pink Floyd, Rainbow, Jon Lord, all good.”  
“You know Rainbow?” Yongguk asked in surprise and turned off the stove.  
“Yeah, my aunt loves them. She introduced me to a lot of different music,” hoodie-guy answered, as Yongguk took the pan of meat and vegetables over on the table.  
“Cool,” Yongguk nodded, wishing he had someone like that and turned around for the pot of noodles.  
“Yeah,” hoodie-guy nodded. “But I haven’t heard this one with Robert Plant and Alison Krauss,” he said holding up said album.  
“It’s a bit different from what I usually listen to, but still good,” Yongguk smiled and sat down across from the other.  
“We’ll have to listen to it sometime,” hoodie-guy smiled back and put down the CD’s at the edge of the table, away from the hot pan and pot. “But this smells really good.”  
“Let’s hope it tastes as good as it smells,” Yongguk laughed nervously.  
“I’m sure it will,” hoodie-guy said and started piling food onto his plate. When he was done, Yongguk followed his example with half a mind. Instead of paying full attention of what he was doing, he looked at hoodie-guy, who was waiting on him with a smile. He had a really nice smile.  
“Well I hope it tastes good,” Yongguk said when he had enough food on his plate.  
“Stop worrying so much, it will,” hoodie-guy smiled and took the first bite. With inquisitive eyes, Yongguk stared at the other, analyzing every change of expression.  
“It tastes good,” hoodie-guy smiled. “The chicken is a little bit dry, but still good.”  
Yongguk sighed in relief. “That’s a relief,” he said.  
Hoodie-guy laughed and nodded, before taking another bite. Yongguk followed his example and took a bite. It actually wasn’t bad. The other wasn’t lying to appease him. The chicken was a little dry as he had said, but that was it. This was actually a success. His parents would be so proud of him, for finally learning a little bit more about cooking.  
Hoodie-guy started talking about the piece he had written in class, which turned out to not sound that good all the way through. Yongguk smiled and found it rather easy to fall into conversation with the other. He was comfortable to be around and it still baffled him that it was so comfortable. However, he didn’t miss the awkwardness that hung around him like a dark cloud in early conversations with other people.  
“I’ll help with the dishes,” hoodie-guy offered, when they finished eating.  
“No, it’s fine,” Yongguk waved him off.  
“I insist,” hoodie said. “Besides, it wasn’t really a question,” he grinned.  
“But-“  
“No,” hoodie-guy interrupted. Yongguk couldn’t help but smile back at the other, despite wanting to argue. Hoodie-guy was really nice, and it made his heart swell that someone could be like that.  
“Fine,” he gave in and the two of them started doing the dishes.  
“What do you think of math?” hoodie-guy asked. “I’ve noticed if you aren’t sleeping before math, then you always are after.”  
Yongguk coughed awkwardly. “Uhm, well, I have nothing against math,” he started. “Our teacher is so boring though.”  
“You can say that again,” hoodie-guy laughed. “I’ve never met anyone before who can keep the same tone going for so long.”  
“Exactly!” Yongguk nodded.  
“Reminds me of Professor Binns from Harry Potter,” hoodie-guy grinned and Yongguk couldn’t help but laugh.  
“Yeah, he might as well be a dreary ghost.”  
“I’m so glad you’ve read the books, and know about him.”  
“Well, my friend Hyosung would kill me if I hadn’t. She’s a big fan,” Yongguk smiled.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled. “Who is Hyosung, I haven’t seen her around you at school?”  
“Well she lives almost at the other side of the country,” he told the other. “I met her on this site for Shakespeare enthusiasts.”  
“That’s pretty cool. So you like Shakespeare too?” hoodie-guy asked.  
Yongguk nodded. “Though not as much as she does. She has read his plays and sonnets several times, I’ve only read them once or twice in Hamlet’s case,” he told the other.  
“Cool, I don’t think I’ve ever had the will to get through those plays willingly,” hoodie-guy laughed. “Though Hamlet was pretty good, when we read that last year in school. I almost considered buying it for myself.”  
“You read Hamlet last year? That’s not fair,” Yongguk frowned. “At my old school, we only read Romeo and Juliet and Much Ado About Nothing.”  
“We’ve read Romeo and Juliet too, but not that last one. Is it any good?”  
“Well kinda. It’s funny and more light hearted, but it isn’t my favorite,” Yongguk told the other. “It’s basically about a man and a woman who hate each other and then get tricked into liking each other, but there’s so much more going on of course.”  
“Ah okay, maybe I should pick it up some time. I like a funny read,” hoodie-guy smiled. “My parents would get heart attacks from the shock of seeing me read Shakespeare in my freetime.”  
Yongguk chuckled. “You can borrow my copy, if you want? I have the collected works.”  
“I might pick you up on that,” hoodie-guy smiled and then started to laugh. “I can see it before me now. My parents enter, seeing me with the collected works of Shakespeare, they clutch their hearts in surprise and start ranting about having their only son replaced by aliens.”  
Yongguk laughed along. “They would do that?” he asked.  
“Yes, they’re very dramatic,” hoodie-guy grinned. “When I asked my mom about borrowing some history books, she literally gasped and wondered if I would actually become something decent like a historian. When I told her it was for a history project, she was so disappointed I didn’t want them willingly.”  
“Wait, so you don’t like history?” Yongguk asked. He had thought the other did.  
“Oh I do, just not as much as her,” hoodie-guy smiled. “I get my dose of history from school and her excited ramblings at dinner, not to mention the jokes.”  
“History jokes?”  
“Yeah, they’re either really funny or really disturbing.”  
“Well a lot of disturbing stuff has happened throughout history.”  
“Indeed, so it was inevitable,” hoodie-guy said. “But when she comes with a really disturbing one or a really insulting one, she always tells me to never repeat them.”  
“That might be for the better.”  
“You are so right,” hoodie-guy nodded. “She’s a nice person, but she would sacrifice herself to the gods, just to make a history joke that fits the situation.”  
Yongguk chuckled and hoodie-guy started telling about the many ways his mother had ruined him. One of them being singing a British song from the Second World War, every time he did the laundry. He couldn’t help but laugh at that, and almost dropped the pot when handing it to hoodie-guy for drying.  
After they had finished the dishes and Yongguk was wiping the table with a cloth, he couldn’t help but wonder what they were going to do now. Would hoodie-guy go home? Would he stay? What should they do if he stayed? He didn’t know, and the uncertainty made his stomach turn. If possible, then he’d like hoodie-guy to stay, as he really enjoyed his company. It was weird being so invested in a friendship so early, but hoodie-guy had an almost addictive voice and he was really interesting.  
“Well then,” hoodie-guy said, as Yongguk finished wiping the table. He really hoped the other wouldn’t go. He wanted him to stay. The other could stay the whole night if he wanted to. They could talk and listen to music, maybe play some games. It would be nice, as it always was with hoodie-guy, and maybe Yongguk could figure out what his real name was. Without letting the other know, that he didn’t know.  
“I have to go,” hoodie-guy said, saying the one thing that Yongguk didn’t want him to say now. “It’s been nice, but I have to be home before 9.”  
Yongguk looked at the clock. It was a quarter to 9. “Oh,” he said, trying to keep the disappointment out of his voice and failing.  
Hoodie-guy smiled. “We should do this again,” he said and Yongguk’s stomach filled with butterflies. He nodded at the other with a smile. Hoodie-guy went out of the kitchen and back to the front door, with Yongguk at his heels.  
“I’ll see you tomorrow,” hoodie-guy smiled at him, when he had put his shoes on.  
Yongguk nodded with a smile. “Yeah, see you.” With that, hoodie-guy turned around and walked out the door with a wave. He waved back and closed the door, with a wide smile.  
“Fuck,” he cursed suddenly and the smile on his lips disappeared. He had totally forgotten to ask about the notes and why the other was messing up his stuff!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello! And welcome back to the 'Why Is Yongguk So Oblivious Show'!  
> In this episode, Yongguk forgets his purpose, but succeeds in cooking!  
> I hope you've enjoyed it.  
> Tune in sometime soon (hopefully) to see what happens next in:  
> The Life of the Painfully Oblivious!  
> Peace out (^_^)v


	7. Chapter 7

Next morning, Yongguk was still cursing himself for forgetting about asking. Although they were very dreary curses, as he was tired, while he dragged himself to school. As usual, he was on autopilot, until he collapsed in his chair, where he fell asleep instantly. Sometimes he could stay awake until the teacher came and then dozed off during the lesson. However, this time he was too tired.  
Last night he had been tossing and turning, thinking of everything that had happened at the dinner with hoodie-guy. He had been looking for something that could clue him in, on why the other was messing up his stuff and leaving notes of apology after. However, after hours and hours, he came up with nothing and finally fell asleep.  
Only to wake up at the sound of his alarm two hours later.  
He cursed himself for not asking, he cursed himself for getting side tracked when thinking of what could possibly be a clue for why. Over and over again, he had gotten side tracked, because he couldn't help but smile and felt this odd feeling in his stomach, over something like hoodie-guy laughing or smiling. It was so odd, but the bunny teeth that showed themselves when hoodie-guy smiled were so...  
Well he didn't know what they were, but he liked them. He liked it when hoodie-guy smiled or laughed and showed them. He had also started wondering why hoodie-guy always wore a hoodie. Maybe he liked them? Maybe there was another reason?  
Someone shook his arm. Fighting his way back to the awake world from the land of dreams, he blinked drearily.  
“Good morning,” hoodie-guy greeted him with a smile.  
“Morning,” he mumbled. The other was sitting in front of him, looking amused.  
“I'm sorry to wake you, but we need to finish our project,” hoodie-guy said.  
“Yeah,” Yongguk nodded and sat up with a yawn. A quick look at the clock, and he calculated he had slept for three hours.  
Hoodie-guy chuckled. “Do you need a minute?”  
“Nah, I'm awake,” he replied and blinked a couple of times. “Did you bring your computer?”  
“It's right in front of you,” hoodie-guy replied and Yongguk looked down to see the computer sit where his head had been a minute ago.  
“Oh,” he said. When had that appeared? “Okay, let's get to it then,” he nodded. Hoodie-guy nodded and opened up the computer.  
For the next hour, they wrote down the last bit of what they wanted to write. After that, they started reading through it, correcting mistakes. Yongguk really enjoyed it, as he always did with hoodie-guy. They worked efficiently, but didn't rush. By the end of the lesson, they had finished it. Leaning back in his chair, hoodie-guy smiled happily at him, so he couldn't help but smile back.  
“That feels good,” hoodie-guy said.  
“It does,” Yongguk nodded. They sat and smiled at each other over the table. He got lost in the hoodie-guy's smile, the way his lips stretched, showing his white teeth, and the way his eyes were folded into crescents, stars glittering in them. Hoodie-guy looked utterly relaxed and happy. It made Yongguk happy too, that the other looked like that.  
The bell rang, ruining the moment. The other students chatter grew louder and they scrambled from their seats to put back their stuff and get out of class. Their teacher said something over the noise about final hand in being on Friday, and presentations next week. Hoodie-guy stood up from his seat in front of Yongguk with a smile.  
“I'll leave you to sleep again,” he told him.  
Yongguk nodded, but wished the other would stay a little while longer. Maybe he could even stay awake for that. However, he didn't ask the other to stay, when he was kind enough to know he needed to sleep during the day.  
Sp he laid down his head on his arms and closed his eyes. With hoodie-guy's smile in his mind, he slowly drifted off to sleep.

When he awoke again, it was because someone pulled at his chair, leaving him to sit on the very edge. He quickly raised his head from his arms and looked around. The jackets had surrounded him, but hoodie-guy was there as well. Everyone wore thunderous expressions, but hoodie-guy’s was the worst. He was holding the collar of one of the jackets who stood directly behind Yongguk. What was going on?  
“If you even try, I will make sure you won’t be able to walk for a week!” hoodie-guy’s threat was spat out. Yongguk got the feeling he was missing something as he looked from the jacket and hoodie-guy.  
“Does Himchannie have a crush?” the jacket sneered at hoodie-guy and struggled to push his hands away from his collar. Was that hoodie-guy’s name?  
“This is your last warning,” hoodie-guy threatened, when the jacket finally got the hands off his collar. Yongguk silently noted not to get on hoodie-guy’s bad side, or was it Himchan? He would have to check later, but it sounded plausible. He thought he had heard the name before.  
“Like you could do anything against me,” the jacket sneered once more. Yongguk suddenly got a hold of the situation. The jackets were threatening hoodie-guy. He could feel the anger grow in his very bones. No one did that to his friend.  
“I would advise you to fuck off,” he said as he stood up and crossed his arms.  
“Oh look, sleeping beauty knows how to curse,” the jacket snickered and the other jackets joined in. He then looked at hoodie-guy. “You won’t win this, you’re only one, against six,” he continued.  
Yongguk felt his blood boil. Alright that was it. “You have exactly ten seconds to get the fuck out of here, before I smash your face in,” he told the jacket as calmly as he could. No one threatened his friend and no one wrote him off like that!  
The jackets laughed. “What? Yo-“  
Yongguk punched him in the face.  
For a moment, everything went in slow motion. The jacket stumbled back a step, while the other jackets stared at him in surprise. Hoodie-guy looked surprised too, but more amused than anything else. Then hoodie-guy grabbed his hand and pulled at him. A few moments later, they were out of the classroom, their things in hoodie-guy’s hand, walking fast down the hallway.  
When they were out of the school, hoodie-guy started chuckling to himself and a moment later, he was full out laughing. Yongguk followed in a daze, wondering how someone’s laugh could be so… likeable. He noticed they were on their way to his house after a while, still in a fast tempo.  
“Himchan?” he tried, hoping that really was hoodie-guy’s name.  
“Yeah?” hoodie-guy replied as he visibly tried to calm himself down. So his name was Himchan.  
“Slow down a bit, please,” he requested.  
Hoodie-guy, no Himchan, stopped up. “Oh yeah, sorry,” he apologized and let go of Yongguk’s hand. He missed the warmth immediately.  
“It’s okay,” Yongguk replied. For a moment they stood in silence. Yongguk’s mind swirled around what had just happened. He had punched someone. Fuck. That had not been the intention. He had just been so angry. Whatever the jackets had done to hoo-, no Himchan, to have such a thunderous expression, must have been bad. The way they had talked about Yongguk too, had been entirely disrespectful.  
What had been going on, to make such an expression come forth on his friend’s face?  
“What happened?” Yongguk asked, wanting to know.  
“You just punched Sunghoon,” hoo-, no Himchan, replied and started laughing again. “You punched Sunghoon in front of his little friends, totally surprising everyone!” he laughed. He really had a likeable laugh.  
“Yes,” Yongguk nodded, “but I meant before that.”  
Himchan calmed down a little and looked at him with what Yongguk would call fondness. A weird fluttering erupted in his stomach, but he ignored it. He wanted to know what was going on.  
“You still don’t know, do you?” Himchan asked.  
Yongguk got even more confused. What was going on here?  
“Why don’t you think about it, while we walk to your house,” Himchan suggested.  
“Why doesn’t anyone want to tell me it straight up?” Yongguk exclaimed. Himchan was just like his other friends.  
“What?”  
“My other friends, they won’t tell me either, even though they probably know who you’re protecting from the bullying,” he explained, trying to keep calm about the lack of information he had, but failing.  
“I’ll tell you when we get to your house, don’t worry,” Himchan told him. “But I’ll ask you, what does it say, that your friends know, even though they have never met me or anyone at school?”  
Yongguk stopped feeling frustrated. It had something to do with himself. Exactly what, he wasn’t sure about. However, he would figure it out. So as they walked in silence, he thought about everything and what his role in it was.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So Yongguk finally starts thinking. xD  
> Also, short chapter, I know. But after the longer one last time, I'm thinking it'll be fine ;)  
> Peace out (^_^)v


	8. Chapter 8

It hit him like lightning. Everything evolved around him. Which was a very weird thought, because he thought he was just on the sidelines of everything. He didn't have any friends other than hoodie-, no Himchan, at school. Yet, somehow, he was at the center of everything in this situation. Otherwise his friends wouldn't have known.  
He felt really stupid.  
How oblivious had he been?! It was obvious now that he really thought about it and he felt like facepalming himself into the next world. They arrived at his house, and he unlocked the door, trying to keep himself from slamming his face into the door. How could he have been so stupid?  
“You look like you've figured something out,” Himchan said when they had entered the living room and sat down.  
“You can say that again,” he mumbled, still not quite believing he could be so stupid. He got top marks in most of his assignments, yet he had failed so spectacularly in something that happened before his nose.  
“Do you want to talk about it?”  
“Yes,” he nodded, but didn't say anything further. Yongguk was still trying to figure out how anyone could be so stupid, which made it even more painful because he had been so stupid.  
“You okay?” Himchan asked worriedly, and Yongguk looked over at the other. His eyebrows were scrunched together, making a worried little wrinkle between them. He wore the hood up as always, but his hair wasn't covering his eyebrows as it usually did.  
“Did you get a haircut?” he asked curiously.  
One of Himchan's eyebrows rose up under the bit of hair that was covering his forehead. “Yes?”  
“When?”  
“Last week.”  
Yongguk groaned. “I'm so oblivious.”  
“I hope you don't take this the wrong way, but yes,” Himchan smiled softly, his eyebrow lowering back in place. It was a very nice eyebrow.  
“What the hell is wrong with me?” he muttered. Now he was thinking about Himchan's eyebrow?  
“Hey, it's okay,” Himchan comforted him. “I wear a hood all the time, how is anyone supposed to notice?”  
“That's not what I meant,” Yongguk replied.  
“What then?”  
“Nothing, don't worry about it,” he waved his friend off. Himchan nodded, letting it go. “So the person you've been protecting from the bullying is me?” he asked instead.  
“Yeah,” Himchan nodded once more.  
“How come I haven't noticed then?” he questioned more himself than anyone else.  
“Well for one, you sleep most of the time, which means you don't get to see who does it,” Himchan answered. “That makes you an easy target.”  
“Yeah, I guess.”  
“Bullies go after easy targets, and things like throwing all of your stuff on the ground or taking your clothes from the locker room just makes you easy when you sleep,” Himchan went on.  
“I was wondering why you were leaving me notes in my bag,” Yongguk told him honestly, even though it was a bit embarrassing. “I thought you were looking for something.”  
A small chuckle escaped Himchan, but he schooled his face pretty quickly. “So you knew it was me?”  
“I knew it was you leaving notes, so I was thinking I'd ask you, but...” Yongguk trailed off, not wanting to say the last bit. That was really embarrassing.  
“But what?”  
“I'm-uh, not that good at talking to people,” he answered.  
“You're talking just fine right now though,” Himchan countered.  
“Yes, but-” Yongguk stopped himself before he said too much. How could he tell his friend, that he had gotten too nervous to ask him, so he had invited him over for dinner instead? That would just be weird. He himself didn't even know how that transition had been made.  
“Can we just forget that detail?” he asked instead of explaining.  
“Sure, but now I'm really curious,” his friend agreed. He looked like he really wanted to know though.  
“Besides throwing my stuff on the floor and taking my clothes from the locker room, what have the jackets tried to do to me?” he asked the other.  
“Well, uhm,” Himchan started. “They've thrown small paper balls in your hair once in class, but I picked them all out before I woke you up.”  
Yongguk remembered the time he found a pieces of paper in his hair when he got home.  
“Sorry if that's creepy,” Himchan apologized.  
“It's fine,” Yongguk waved him off. It was kind of sweet somehow, even though he'd really wished he knew he was the jackets' target.  
“They've tried to break the stuff they've poured out from your bag too,” his friend continued. “And then there was the time Sunghoon almost punched you, but mostly I've been able to divert their attention from you, before they could get up to something.”  
Yongguk sat in silence for a moment. How could he not notice this? Yes, he slept the day away, but he wasn't oblivious, was he? Okay, maybe he was, based on recent data, but he didn't feel like that.  
“I wish you'd told me,” he finally said. “I wish my other friends had told me, when they figured it out.”  
“Sorry,” Himchan apologized.  
“It's fine, you can't change the past,” Yongguk smiled at his friend. “But if I had known, then maybe I could've stopped them, or something.”  
Himchan looked thoughtfully at him. “I bet you could,” he nodded slowly. “But you didn't have any friends at school before me, I've noticed,” he continued, his face suddenly serious and sad. “And being alone while being bullied, able to stop it or not, is a hard job.”  
“You sound like you're speaking from experience,” Yongguk said, looking curiously at his friend. Himchan didn't seem like he had been bullied, but then again, all he had was accounts of after effects on the internet to go by. He didn't know what previously bullied people were like in real life, after they got out of it.  
“I do speak from experience,” his friend said, looking sadder than he had ever seen him look like before. Yongguk didn't want the other to look like that. He wanted the different happy smiles back. “I had to switch schools, because it got so bad.”  
Yongguk felt something break in his heart. How could anyone ever bully someone like Himchan? He was so nice and sweet, funny and cringe worthy in the best way possible.  
“Which was why I didn't want the same to happen to you,” Himchan told him, a small sad smile on his lips. “I've learned how to fight after I got bullied, and when I saw Sunghoon and the others closing in on you... well I didn't want the same to happen to anyone else.”  
He looked at his friend in wonder. Himchan really was a nice person. A good person. He knew it already, but this just caused the feeling in his chest to expand. Himchan had protected him from being bullied, even though they didn't know each other in the beginning. Yes, he wished his friend had told him, so that he could do something about it himself, but he couldn't help but marvel at his friend, who had thought of him before himself. The jackets could easily have changed their target to Himchan, but he had done it anyways, even though he had been bullied before. Because he had been bullied before.  
That was strength.  
“Thank you,” Yongguk said with a smile on his lips.  
“Any time,” Himchan replied with a smile of his own, that wasn't sad. It was small, but happy, and it made Yongguk's heart beat a little bit faster.  
“Want something to eat?” Yongguk asked and Himchan nodded. So they got up and went into the kitchen, so they could make some ramen. They talked as they usually did, sometimes coming back to the subject of the bullying Himchan had been protecting him from. Mostly they talked about music.  
As they ate, they talked too, and Yongguk was once again in wonder at how comfortable Himchan was. It was unbelievable in some way, but very believable at the same time. It was how Himchan worked and it was like someone took a dream and made reality out of it. Everything about his friend seemed to be that way.  
When his parents came home, they were still in the kitchen, talking. Yongguk couldn't help but notice the bright smiles on their faces when they saw Himchan with him, and he wondered why. Soon the other had to go, and with final smiles, they bid each other farewell. He couldn't keep the smile off his face, when he went back into the living room, where his parents sat.  
“Did you have another project to work on?” his father asked, and Yongguk shook his head.  
“No, he just came over for a visit,” he answered.  
His parents' smiles seemed to get brighter. “We're glad you've found a friend at school,” his mother told him. “And Himchan seems like such a nice guy.”  
Yongguk smile fell. He hadn't told his parents Himchan's name, so how could his mother have known? Himchan hadn't told them either, he had just smiled and said hello.  
Then it hit him.  
A couple of weekends ago, Himchan had been here, and his mother had said that Himchan had arrived. With his name. How could he have been so stupid?! He could've just asked his mother about Himchan's name, instead of just finding out what his name was today?  
He had really been oblivious, and today was apparently a day of revelations.  
“What's wrong?” his mother asked concerned.  
“Nothing,” he answered. “I've just been really slow and bad with names.”  
His parents laughed. “You can't be the best at everything,” his father told him.  
Yongguk smiled back, before going up into his room. He needed to tell his friends about this, so he would wait until they were all online, and then call them.

“Hey Yongguk,” Hyosung greeted him with a smile when she answered the call. “What's with the 'important'?”  
“Two sec, let me just get Youngjae and Daehyun too,” he answered with a smile. He could could tell them that he had figured it out. Finally. A few seconds later, Daehyun and Youngjae answered as well.  
“What is up, lovely companions, and loveliest person on earth?” Daehyun greeted them with a gigantic smile.  
“I think I know what happened yesterday,” Hyosung drew a disgusted face, while Youngjae was blushing.  
“You know nothing,” Youngjae replied. “You have too vague information to come up with a certain conclusion.” He was sporting a new hickey on his throat.  
“Based on Daehyun's happy expression, your blushing when I mentioned it and your new hickey, I would say I have a solved the case,” Hyosung grinned, while Youngjae pointed his tongue out at the screen. “We all know, only you can make him that happy, so chillax bro,” she continued and threw a couple of handsigns.  
Yongguk groaned along with Daehyun and Youngjae. “Please don't do that ever again,” Youngjae replied.  
“I second that,” Daehyun said and Yongguk nodded along fiercely. Hyosung merely laughed at them.  
“You haven't been getting much sleep lately, have you?” Yongguk asked teasingly, but also concerned.  
“Sleep is for the old,” Hyosung declared. “But don't worry, I've got sleep time this weekend,” she added for the sake of his worrying. It seemed to appease Youngjae and Daehyun too, because their smiles turned brighter.  
“So, Yongguk, what is this 'important' thing that you need to tell us?” Daehyun asked.  
“I've figured it out,” he told them.  
“So you know who hoodie-guy has been protecting?” Youngjae asked to clarify.  
“Yeah,” he nodded. “And I've also figured out his real name.”  
“Hold up!” Youngjae exclaimed. “You've figured it out and figured out his name, all in the same day?”  
Yongguk nodded once more. “Yup.”  
“Praise the lord!” Hyosung exclaimed and threw her hands up in the air.  
“Amen!” Daehyun added. “I think I'm turning religious. Our prayers have been answered!”  
“Shut it,” Yongguk grumbled, but couldn't help but break out into a smile after.  
“How did you find out?” Youngjae asked.  
“Well...” Yongguk started hesitantly. He had hoped they would have just left it at 'hallelujah', but he should have known better. However, he did want to turn over the new information with someone who wasn't involved today, so he told them. Everything from waking up and punching one of the jackets (their mouths fell to the floor at that point), to having a slight meltdown over how oblivious he could be (they snickered and looked at him with judging eyes).  
“So now you know,” Daehyun stated with a nod after he had finished his tale. “Now we just need one more realization, and we'll be there.”  
“What realization?” he asked.  
“You'll get there,” Daehyun laughed, while the others smiled along.  
“And now we can call him by his real name instead of 'hoodie-guy',” Youngjae added.  
“Yeah,” Yongguk smiled softly. He liked that. Himchan, not hoodie-guy.  
“I still can't get over the fact you punched one of them,” Hyosung said.  
“He wasn't very nice,” Yongguk defended himself. “But it was kind of a spur of the moment thing.”  
“I wasn't saying it's bad!” Hyosung smiled. “I'm just saying it's not like you.”  
“But don't make it a habit,” Youngjae added.  
“Don't worry, I won't,” he told them. Though if the jackets were mean assholes to Himchan, he might just do it again. Even though he knows that his friend could defend himself.  
Yongguk smiled to himself. Himchan. He was so...  
“What are you smiling about?” Daehyun interrupted his thought.  
“Himchan,” Yongguk answered. “He's a really nice person.”  
Youngjae chuckled. “Yeah, we've noticed.”  
“Let us meet him some time,” Hyosung suggested.  
Yongguk's eyes widened in horror. “No!”  
“What? Why not?” Daehyun asked.  
“Yeah, what's so wrong, that we can't meet him?” Youngjae added.  
“You're not meeting him, I know it'll end up as a disaster,” Yongguk replied.  
“But why?” Hyosung questioned.  
“You guys are horrible people, and you'll embarrass me,” he answered.  
“The faith you have in us is disappointing,” Daehyun clutched his heart, as if he was actually offended.  
“I hadn't even thought about embarrassing you, but it's a great idea,” Youngjae grinned, with Hyosung nodding along with a laugh.  
Yongguk buried his face in his hands. What had he ever done, to deserve such embarrassing friends? He frowned. He was a bit worried about tomorrow. The jackets would be back, and he would have to face them. Himchan would be there though, and with that thought, a smile reappeared on his face. It was nice to have a friend at school.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I am back!
> 
> And Yongguk finds out how oblivious he has been xD Praise the lords, hallelujah, etc etc, whatever one says in these situations ;)
> 
> Tune back in again, at some point in time that is unknown, for the next update ;P
> 
> Peace out (^_^)v


	9. Chapter 9

The next morning, he got to school at the usual time. Himchan wasn't there yet, but a few of his other classmates were. He sat himself at his desk, waiting for his friend to come. He was oddly nervous, which wasn't a nice feeling. Not in this case anyways. It wasn't nervous butterflies, but more like a twist in his gut. It was like a bad premonition.

The jackets entered the classroom, one of them sporting a split and swollen lip. If eyes could kill, he would be dead now, as the glares they were sending his way were not to be joked with. Before the situation could evolve however, someone bumped into one of them, knocking them out of balance, one by one, like dominoes.

“Oops, sorry,” Himchan's voice apologized, though he didn't sound sorry at all. A second later, he emerged from behind the jackets, wearing a mischievous and brilliant smile, that he sent Yongguk's way. He couldn't help but smile back at his friend, following him with his eyes all the way to his seat.

“Himchan, you-” the jacket with the swollen lip started but was cut off by the bell. Himchan grinned happily, as the teacher arrived and told the jackets to sit down. Yongguk found that he was grinning too, and tried to wipe it off his face, as it only seemed to piss off the jackets more.

Sometime during the lesson, Yongguk fell asleep, and it wasn't before someone was poking his arm, that he woke up again.

“Good morning, sunshine,” Himchan greeted him when he looked up.

“Morning,” he mumbled and stretched.

“It's only lunch break, but I thought I'd wake you up in case Sunghoon and his lackeys try something,” his friend told him, and Yongguk nodded before yawning. With half closed eyes, he looked around the classroom. It was almost empty, only a couple of girls remaining.

“Where are they?” he asked Himchan.

“I don't know, probably off torturing someone with their stupidity,” his friend answered.

Yongguk couldn't help but chuckle. “What if they try to bully someone though?”

“They won't, they usually hang out in the cafeteria where there's teachers, or out back where everyone knows not to go,” Himchan replied.

Yongguk nodded. That was good.

“So are you excited about finally handing in our history project today?” Himchan asked. “We're early, so I'm thinking we can work on the presentation this weekend? If you have time?”

“Yeah, sure,” Yongguk agreed and couldn't help but smile brightly at the prospect of spending more time with his friend. It was still weird thinking of the other like that, but it also felt nice. Who knew he'd get a friend in school?

A thought popped up.

“Do you really think they'll do something?” he asked his friend.

“I don't really know. All I know is that they're angry and don't like being humiliated,” Himchan answered. “So far they haven't done much, but I did have a fight with Sunghoon after school one day.”

Yongguk's mouth dropped open. “What?”

“What?” Himchan replied, looking slightly confused.

“You were in a fight with one of them?” Yongguk asked. “Like an actual fight?” He hadn't seen this one coming.

Himchan nodded. “Sunghoon followed me after school, warning me to stay out of his way,” he told Yongguk. “And then he tried to hit me, so we got in a little fight, but I got my point across.”

Yongguk's head was swimming. His friend had gotten in a fight. He had not seen this coming in any way. Himchan seemed so peaceful. The thunderous face his friend had made yesterday, flashed through his mind. So maybe Himchan wasn't as peaceful. He could get downright scary. However, the way Himchan said it like it was nothing, made Yongguk think, maybe his friend wasn't as nice as he thought. On the other hand, the jacket had been the one attacking first, so it was self defense.

“I can see you thinking,” Himchan interrupted his thoughts. “What is it?”

“Nothing,” Yongguk answered, not sure if he should say anything before he had thought this through. How would he tell his friend, that he had the thought that he wasn't as nice as first thought? That would just end up in a weird thing that might break their friendship. Maybe. Yongguk didn't want to break their friendship, because Himchan is nice. He had his heart in the right place and a moral compass that pointed in the right direction. His friend also made Yongguk happier and the thought of ruining their relationship was a little too much to handle now.

“Are you sure?” Himchan asked, looking concerned. “Because you've spaced out twice now.”

“Sorry,” Yongguk apologized.

“It's fine, but I have to admit I'm curious,” his friend smiled softly, before it dropped and was replaced with a frown. “You don't think I enjoyed being in a fight, do you?”

Yongguk's eyes widened. That was pretty close to what he had been thinking. He shook his head. No, he didn't think that, though he was in doubt for a moment.

“Okay, good,” Himchan nodded slowly. “'Cause despite however satisfying it is to see Sunghoon not get what he wants, a fight is not the right answer.”

Yongguk nodded in agreement. “It never is.”

“Either way, we should be ready for something to happen,” Himchan told him. “I don't think Sunghoon and his lackeys share our philosophy.”

“Me neither,” Yongguk said, giving his friend a half smile.

“So,” Himchan said a little loudly. “It's time we switched subjects to something less depressing. Do you think we could look over your collection of music too? You've told me you have loads of different music, but I haven't actually seen the CD's.”

Yongguk chuckled happily. “Yeah, sure,” he nodded. The brilliant smile Himchan gave him in return made his heart beat a little harder and a little faster. He had come to love that he could make Himchan smile this way.

 

Someone poked his arm and Yongguk looked up to see Himchan's crotch in front of him. It was the familiar hoodie that sat around the other's hips that allowed him to recognize it instantly. Looking up, he found, unsurprisingly, Himchan's face. It looked stony and slightly angered. Yongguk turned his head and found one of the jackets. Oh. So that was why.

“I'd suggest you get out of here, Sunghoon,” Himchan told the jacket icily. Yongguk shook the sleepiness off himself and stood up, and placed himself next to his friend.

“I'd suggest you watch your backs,” the jacket threatened them.

“Is that a threat?” Himchan asked, looking threateningly at the jacket.

The jacket's eyebrow flinched. “It won't end well for you two,” he said.

“You know you can't get away with bullying people and beating them up. The teachers will find out,” Yongguk said, finding his voice had dropped to a threatening tone.

“Are you gonna go tattle to the teachers, Yongguk? Can't you finish a fight on your own?” the jacket mocked him.

“At least it's better than trying to make yourself feel better by picking on others,” Yongguk replied.

“We all know from psychology that bullies have little to no self worth,” Himchan added. “I'd suggest you don't take this somewhere you'll regret.”

The jacket stepped threateningly forward. “You're the one who's going to regret getting in my way, Himchan. Both of you are going to regret the day you started at this school,” he said and pushed the table into their thighs, before stomping out of there.

Yongguk looked at Himchan, who looked right back.

“We should get out of here,” Himchan said after a moment of silence, but didn't move or break eye contact.

“Yeah,” Yongguk agreed, but he didn't move either. Himchan's eyes were actually very beautiful. The way they were slanted and the dark color of his iris. He could get lost in those eyes. They were really fascinating, and the way they looked at him was so soft. Fascinating.

After an eternal, yet too short moment, Himchan broke contact. “Come on. Get your stuff,” he said and picked up a bag by his feet. Yongguk nodded and picked up his bag. With that, the two of them went out of the classroom in silence.

Yongguk felt like something had happened between the two of them, but he wasn't sure what. All he knew was that the atmosphere was heavy with something. Himchan was looking at the floor thoughtfully as they walked through the almost empty halls.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked when they reached the front doors.

Himchan looked up at him, still as thoughtful as before. “I'm not sure,” he answered.

“How can you not know what you're thinking about?” Yongguk questioned confused.

His friend chuckled. “I really don't know, my mind does weird shit sometimes,” he grinned. Yongguk couldn't help but chuckle too, and nodded. His own mind did weird stuff too sometimes.

“How about I walk you home?” Himchan suggested. “I'll tell you about our dear history teacher's surprised face.”

“Of course,” Yongguk nodded and started walking home, with his friend beside him. “But-uh... why would our history teacher be surprised?”

“Did you forget about our finished report?”

He had. “Uhm, no?”

Himchan laughed happily. “Of course you didn't,” he said in between laughter. Yongguk really liked that laugh. It was so happy. Which was obvious since he was laughing, but this laughter was probably the happiest he had seen his friend laugh. It made him happy too, that his friend was happy. It also made butterflies flutter around his stomach. All in all, it was just perfect. He really liked it.

 

“And then he laughed really happily,” Yongguk told his friends. “Like really laughed. It was great to see him that happy.” He had been telling them about what had happened today after school with one of the jackets. The part about Himchan walking him home and staying for an hour had been included too, because he wanted to tell someone. Especially all the times he had made Himchan laugh and Himchan had made him laugh. They were like little precious moments, that he needed to express his thankfulness for.

“Aaaw, that's great,” Hyosung cooed.

“I think I'm about to puke,” Youngjae complained.

“Shut up Youngjae, you like seeing Daehyun happy,” Hyosung shut him up. “You can't deny Yongguk that feeling of bursting at the seams because he made another person happy.”

Youngjae opened his mouth to say something but didn't seem to come up with anything.

Yongguk just watched his screen in confusion. “But me and Himchan are just friends,” he said. “It's a different relationship.” Why would Hyosung compare Himchan and his relationship with Daehyun and Youngjae's?

“Aaaw, you like seeing me happy, Youngjae?” Daehyun smiled through the screen, completely ignoring Yongguk.

“Shut up,” Youngjae muttered, with a blush on his cheeks.

“Sorry Youngjae,” Hyosung apologized, sounding too cheery to be anything like apologetic. “But yes Daehyun, you should hear the way he gushes over your smiles when we talk without you and Yongguk.”

Youngjae blushed even more and looked down in his lap. He looked thoroughly embarrassed. It was kind of cute though, and Yongguk was happy to see that his two friends still got on so well. Daehyun was looking all kinds of happy at the moment, smiling from ear to ear and a little further.

“I love you too, Youngjae,” Daehyun said softly. Youngjae looked up from his lap in shock and Yongguk could see Hyosung was holding a squeal back. He himself could feel the ache of smiling this much in his cheeks.

“Uhm, Daehyun, can I come over?” Youngjae asked, looking all kinds of flustered and happy.

“Always,” Daehyun answered.

Youngjae nodded. “I'll see you guys later,” he said and hung up.

“I'm gonna go too,” Daehyun said, wearing a soft smile. “I'm getting company.”

“Go and be cute together,” Hyosung smiled back and Yongguk nodded in agreement. Daehyun waved at the camera before hanging up too.

“Well Yongguk, it's just you and me now,” Hyosung said after a moment of silence. “So tell me all about Himchan,” she continued, inviting him to tell her more.

Yongguk smiled at the computer. “You're too nice,” he told her.

“Nah, I'm doing this for sake of my own non-existing love life,” she waved him off. “I need entertainment,” she continued before he could ask more, and gave him an eager look. “So tell me more,” she demanded and with a laugh, Yongguk continued talking about his day with Himchan.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm back with another installment of The Life of the Painfully Oblivious
> 
> I found some daejae photos on my phone, so I was feeling it when I wrote that last part. ;)
> 
> Until next time ^^
> 
> Peace out (^_^)v


	10. Chapter 10

The next days went along in the same way. Peaceful, but the jackets looked more and more threatening at them. Friday, the jackets had even come to the classroom where Himchan and Yongguk were sitting and talking in the recess. They had looked all types of determined and ready for revenge, but their history teacher had come in early, to set up for a presentation. That had halted the jackets, and they had left once more.

“I think we need to be careful on the way home,” Himchan whispered to Yongguk, when the jackets had left. Yongguk had agreed.

So when the final bell rang, signaling weekend for the students and teachers, Himchan had woken Yongguk up immediately. They had agreed that the cover of other students would do them well. The two of them followed the rush of students, eager for freedom, to the entrance. Somehow, they lost the jackets, so when they started down the street towards Yongguk's house, they were almost all alone. A few other students who chose to walk home were there as well, but they were far in between in the cooling weather. Soon they would need to find their winter jackets, from where they had been buried in the closet.

Yongguk and Himchan were talking about the presentation their history teacher had given them, and how next week was their turn. They would have to work on it this weekend, which Yongguk was really happy about. More time with his friend was gladly welcomed. The other made him so happy and comfortable. He had never felt like this about anyone else, but then again he hadn't a friend who was physically there for so long. It was probably natural to be so happy about getting a friend.

He hadn't needed a friend to be physically there, but now that he had one, he wasn't complaining. Especially because Himchan was so nice and comfortable, not to mention admirable in so many ways. They didn't run out of things to talk about, naturally flowing from one topic to another. When the silences came along, they were natural and comfortable, as there was no pressure to fill it. The best part, was when Yongguk didn't have much to say, Himchan could talk, while still making him feel included.

It was some kind of magic that he hadn't experienced before. The way Himchan smiled and laughed was some kind of magic he hadn't seen before. Everything about his friend was magical. It was a bit overwhelming to think about, the depth of his feelings for the other. However, he wouldn't think more about that, as he knew he cared for Himchan. The depth of that feeling was of no matter. What mattered was that he had gained a friend, who was probably the best friend he ever had.

After a couple of hours at Yongguk's house, Himchan had to go home. He couldn't help but frown in worry when his friend told him.

“What if the jackets come after you?” Yongguk asked. He would have liked it better if the other stayed for dinner at least. That way, he would be sure the jackets would be tired of waiting if they were hiding in a bush somewhere.

“I don't live very far from here, I don't think they'll be able to do anything in that short distance,” Himchan answered.

“Yes, but what if?” Yongguk continued. He was worried. One of the jackets had attacked Himchan before, so what would stop him from doing it again?

“We can't live with what if's. That would ruin your life.”

“Okay, let me rephrase. There's a high chance the jackets will try to do something to us, and it would kill me if something happened to you,” he told his friend. He was really worried.

Himchan's expression softened into something that looked very fondly at him. It was kind of overwhelming. “Thank you, but I can handle it. I've taken several self-defense classes, as you know,” his friend told him.

“I know you can handle a couple of them, but what if there are more?” Yongguk still wasn't appeased.

“I'll run.”

“Yes, but can you outrun them?”

“Probably not, now that you mention it,” Himchan replied, frowning too. “But I don't think anything will happen in the time it takes to walk two blocks.”

“Just... please?” Yongguk asked of his friend. He really didn't want the other to get hurt. He was telling the truth earlier, that it would kill him.

Himchan hummed thoughtfully. “How about this? I call you, and we can talk my entire walk home. Then you'll know if something happens, and you can call for help.”

With a few seconds to think about it, Yongguk agreed with a nod.

“Good, because I promised I would be home for dinner,” Himchan nodded back.

When his friend was standing outside his front door, he called him on the phone.

“I'll see you tomorrow,” Himchan smiled at him, as he answered the call.

“Yeah, bright and early,” Yongguk joked.

His friend laughed loudly, and with a wave, he turned to walk home. “Early would be pushing it,” he said through the phone. Yongguk laughed too and watched as his friend walked down the street. They were still talking, and Himchan turned to wave at him a couple of times, before turning around the corner. It was kind of sweet.

Still talking, Yongguk finally went back inside, when he couldn't see his friend anymore. He felt uneasy, but it felt good to have Himchan's voice in his ear. At least that way, he would know if the other got into trouble with the jackets on his way home.

Now that he thought about it, he actually didn't know where Himchan lived. The other had never told him the address. He hadn't been at his friend's house either, even though he had heard a lot about his family.

“Hey, why haven't I been to your house yet?” he asked before Himchan could start up a new topic.

Himchan mumbled something, that he couldn't understand.

“Sorry, what?” Yongguk said.

“It's embarrassing,” Himchan replied, more clearly, though with obvious embarrassment in his voice just from thinking about it.

“Why?” he asked the other. Why would him coming to his friend's house be embarrassing?

“It's my parents.”

“What about them? They sound funny and lovely from what you've told me?”

“Yeah, but they're really embarrassing,” Himchan said.

“Why?”

“You don't want to know,” his friend said, sounding kind of mortified.

Yongguk was really interested now. “That just makes me want to know, you do realize that?”

“I was kind of hoping this would never come up.”

“Why?”

“Because I don't want you to meet them. Ever,” Himchan told him with a groan. “I know you'll probably meet them one day, but I'm not ready to be that embarrassed,” he continued, and Yongguk was even more confused. What could possibly be that embarrassing?

So he asked his friend that exact question.

“You really don't want to know,” Himchan told him again. “It's embarrassing on so many levels.”

“You're not helping my curiosity.”

“I know, and I'm sorry, but I won't tell you,” Himchan said. “I'm not ready for it.”

“But-”

“No buts. I have enough in my own.”

“What?” Yongguk asked confused.

“I have enough in my own butt? As in b-u-t-t,” Himchan explained and Yongguk facepalmed. He was almost as bad as Daehyun, Youngjae and Hyosung. “I can hear you facepalming,” Himchan laughed.

“You're as bad as my other friends,” Yongguk told him.

“They have good humor then,” Himchan's voice held a grin. “When do I get to meet them?”

“Never.”

“Why not?”

“It would be too embarrassing,” Yongguk replied, before realizing his mistake. Himchan caught on immediately though and laughed wholeheartedly.

“Oh would it now?” the other asked, between laughs.

“Shut up,” he grumbled in return.

“Okay, okay, okay, I'll make you a deal,” Himchan said when he calmed down from his laughter. Yongguk perked up from his slumped state on the couch, where he sat. “I'll let you come over if you let me meet your friends,” he proposed.

Yongguk thought about it for a few seconds. He really didn't want Himchan to meet the others, but would it really be that bad, if he got to finally meet Himchan's family and see where he lived?

“Okay,” he agreed finally. He was going to regret this, but he agreed. His curiosity had won.

Himchan cackled evilly, before announcing he was home. So they said their goodbyes and hung up. Yongguk looked forward to tomorrow, where he would see the other again. He smiled to himself and went up into his room. He might as well try to do some homework before he could call the others on skype.

 

Saturday came and Himchan came over once more, so they could work on the presentation. It was easy stuff. They sat in front of the laptop and put everything into a power point. The titles that they had to choose for each short slide was the hardest part of it all. Himchan kept suggesting horrible titles, like 'How to lose your teachers in ten days' for how the teachers had to be a part of the party to teach, and 'Discrimination 101' on what it was like in the classrooms for Jews, before they were sent off. It was horrible, but still kind of funny, which made it even more horrible.

Himchan's argument for why they should use those title's was to 'add some humor to the presentation'. Apparently, his mother had done the same when she was in school. When Yongguk had expressed that their teacher might not find it funny, his friend had agreed, adding that his mother had gotten into trouble more than once for adding humor where it wasn't appropriate at school. Which had followed up with Himchan's 'it's different times now'.

Yongguk had simply raised a judgmental eyebrow at that, to which Himchan had pouted pathetically, before breaking out in laughter. He would be lying if he hadn't laughed along. His friend's pout had been rather spectacular, with the blown up cheeks. It was kind of cute.

“So I might have something to ask you,” Himchan started, when they agreed on taking a short break.

“You might have something to ask me?” Yongguk repeated amused.

“Yeah, it all depends on how you behave,” his friend replied and stuck out his tongue.

“Better than you, I see,” he laughed.

Himchan scowled. “Forget it, I'm not asking.”

“Oh, come on,” Yongguk grinned, before pulling a more somber face. “Please?”

“You're an ass.”

“I have to challenge you and your butt somehow,” Yongguk shrugged, remembering their conversation yesterday.

“Ha!” Himchan exclaimed and pointed at him. “In other words, you have no butt!”

“I didn't say that.”

“You implied it.”

“How would you know? Have you been checking it out?” Yongguk replied.

“Butts for life, man,” Himchan shrugged nonchalantly, though he looked a little red. Was it too warm in here?

“So you check out everyone's butts?” Yongguk questioned and stood up from the couch to open a window.

“Or lack thereof,” his friend teased.

Yongguk looked around at his butt. He was wearing a pair of jeans that were too large. You couldn't see his ass at all. “Are you sure it isn't just because my jeans are too big?” he asked thoughtfully, before realizing what he had said. He was literally asking his friend about his butt. How weird was this?

Himchan laughed loudly and beautifully, throwing his head back and clutched his stomach. Yongguk couldn't help but stare, as his friend tried to say something. It took a while, but he finally calmed down enough to say something.

“I'm so going to regret saying this,” Himchan laughed, which made Yongguk worried. “But, by all means, take off your jeans so I can check,” he continued looking more serious.

Yongguk blushed instantly.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Soooo. I found out I had actually written most of this chapter, after coming back to it after basically two months.  
> I'm so good at this updating thing! ;)  
> anyways, I'm on a writing spree, so I'll just leave it here and go back to the next chapter.  
> Side note: Uhm, I have lost all sense of time in this chapter in relation to other chapters, but I'm too lazy and bad of an author to go check if I'm doing it right. So if it doesn't add up... sorry about that. I hope you guys don't mind...  
> Another side note: I want to thank you for all the comments. I am horrible at responding (cause I get mails on my phone, but I'm not logged on ao3 on my phone, and then I never get around to responding when I'm on my computer), so sorry about that. But I want you to know I love all your comments, they make me smile a lot. Each and every one is appreciated <3
> 
> So yeah...  
> Peace Out (^_^)v


	11. Chapter 11

“What-, no-, what? Wha-?” he tried to say something, as Himchan started laughing again.

“Don't hurt yourself, I'm all about consensual sheet gymnastics,” his friend continued and Yongguk facepalmed. Why was he cursed with friends like this? Usually it wasn't directed to him either, so he could feel his blush growing stronger.

“I'm going to go get some water,” he muttered and went to the kitchen, still blushing furiously. The worst part was, it wasn't like he was against taking off his jeans in front of Himchan. It would just be weird, somehow... in some way. Maybe...

His mind was a mess he concluded, and took a drink of water.

“Did I make you hot?” Himchan's voice asked from behind him, and Yongguk spat his water out in surprise.

“Would you stop?” he groaned, but with no heat, as he stared at the water dripping from the cabinets in front of him.

“Sorry, sorry, I couldn't help myself,” Himchan chuckled. “I'll stop.”

“Thank you!” Yongguk said and took a cloth to dry off the cabinets.

“But just say the word and I'll be there,” his friend added. Yongguk sent a glare in his friend's direction, even though he couldn't help but find it slightly funny too. Himchan's happy and teasing smile was a sight to behold as well. He couldn't help but feel happy about the situation, despite his own embarrassment.

“What was it you wanted to ask me?” Yongguk sighed, trying to hide his smile.

Himchan looked leaned on the doorframe, still smiling. “I was wondering if you wanted to eat dinner at my house?”

Yongguk couldn't fight his smile anymore. “Yeah, sure,” he nodded.

“Great! I'll text my parents,” his friend smiled and found his phone. After a short moment, Himchan looked up again with a smirk on his lips. “So when do I get to meet your friends?”

He felt his smile fall. Fuck. He had forgotten about that deal. “Uhm...”

Himchan chuckled happily. “Today is a really good day for me,” he grinned.

“I've noticed,” Yongguk smiled once more. He couldn't help it when his friend smiled like that.

“And you simply love it when I tease you,” Himchan sang. “I've noticed, and it's okay,” he continued in mock seriousness. “Some people like being embarrassed.”

“Oh come on,” Yongguk laughed.

Himchan grinned back mischievously.

“You're as bad as my other friends,” Yongguk shook his head with a chuckle.

“Whom I'll be meeting when?”

“Well, we usually talk in the evenings or at night, so I think it'd be best if we wait for the weekend,” Yongguk answered with a sigh and a smile at his friend. He just never gave up.

“Yes, I do sleep at night, so I think that might be best,” Himchan nodded happily.

“Next weekend?”

“Sounds great.”

“I'm going to regret this, aren't I?”

“Maybe,” his friend grinned. It really was a good look on him. It warmed his heart, with all the fondness he felt for the other. He was beautiful like this.

Yongguk took a sip of his water. Was it weird for him to think this? He didn't feel the same about Youngjae, Daehyun or Hyosung. It was like everything was intensified with Himchan. Like no one ever before. Maybe it was a sign of something more. That he didn't want them to be just friends. He wanted them to be best friends. It was a nice thought.

“You look like you're thinking deeply about something,” Himchan interrupted him. He nodded. Yeah. Best friends with Himchan, and it felt like they were on their way. “Well I hope it's about the presentation, because it's about time we finished the damn thing.”

Yongguk laughed and put his empty glass down. “Come on, then,” he said and the two went back to the living room.

 

“Rule number one,” Himchan started as soon as they reached his house. “Do not, at any point, mention gas.”

“What? Why?” Yongguk asked confused.

“It'll end up in horrible jokes from my parents, trust me, you do not want to hear them,” Himchan answered. “Rule number two: if they start gushing, accept, ignore and move on.”

“Gushing about what?”

“Anything and everything,” his friend vaguely answered. “Ruler number three.”

“How many rules are there?”

“Rule number three,” Himchan ignored him. “If they do something to make you uncomfortable, signal to me and I'll do my best to help us escape.”

“What could they-”

“Rule number four!” Himchan interrupted. “What happens at the dinner table, stays at the dinner table.”

“What?”

“For both our sakes.”

“I really don't get why-”

The door opened, interrupting them. A woman stood there, with long black hair and the same nose as Himchan. She was a small one, with a wide smile that reminded him of his friend when he was teasing.

“What are you doing out here? Come in, come in,” she ushered them inside. “I hope you haven't been scaring him, Channie, we all know you have a flair for the dramatics.”

“Guess where I got it from,” Himchan answered dryly. Yongguk smiled.

“It's nice to finally meet you, Yongguk,” the woman told him and shook his hand. “My name is Eunjoo.”

“Nice to meet you,” he nodded his head.

“Channie did say you were polite, I hope he hasn't filled you with nonsense,” she said, looking over at Himchan with a teasing glare. “But hurry up, dinner's ready.”

“She seems nice,” Yongguk said, when she left them to take their shoes off.

“Just wait,” Himchan told him, sounding like his doom was nigh. And then he did something that surprised Yongguk.

His friend was unzipping his hoodie, and hung it on the coat rack. Beneath it, he was wearing a normal black T-shirt and... it fit him really well. For the first time, he saw Himchan wearing something that wasn't an over-sized hoodie, and it was really weird. He looked really nice, but it was also really weird not to see the shadows fall across his face. His hair looked fluffy. Yongguk wanted to touch it. The arms too. Heck he wanted to pinch himself to check if this was really real.

Also, he was staring.

“You're staring,” Himchan told him, looking slightly uncomfortable, but also like he didn't want to look uncomfortable.

“Sorry,” Yongguk apologized. “You uhm... it's the first time I see you without a-uhm slightly over-sized hoodie... and you look good,” he tried to explain himself, feeling himself blush.

It looked like Himchan was blushing too. “Thanks.”

For a moment they stood there, looking at each other, before Himchan's mother called, asking them what they were doing that could be taking so long.

“Patience is a virtue,” his friend told his mother as they entered the large kitchen, where a table stood ready for dining.

“I've been patient with you so far,” she responded, ending in a judging raised eyebrow from her son.

“So are we going to stare at the food or eat?” a deep and cheerful voice asked behind them. Yongguk turned to find a man a little taller than him, with soft features. The roundness of his cheeks were the same as Himchan's, so it was probably his dad.

“Changwook, nice to finally meet you,” the man introduced himself and shook his hand. Yongguk replied with his own name and a nod of his head. “Let's eat! I made lasagna.”

“I knew I married you for a reason,” Himchan's mother threw a wink and hand gun in Changwook's direction before they all sat down at the table. Yongguk was served a huge chunk of the lasagna, that he wasn't even sure he'd be able to eat.

“So, what are your future plans?” Eunjoo asked.

“What?” Yongguk replied, startled.

“Education wise? Job wise?” she elaborated.

“Oh, uhm, I was hoping to major in music, with a minor in literature and history,” Yongguk told them.

“He said history, I approve,” Eunjoo declared, turning to her husband beside her. “You take over.”

Yongguk looked at Himchan in slight confusion, but he was facepalming quite spectacularly with closed eyes. Take over?

“You've been spending a lot of time with our son,” Changwook said, looking at him oddly. What was this about?

“Yeah, we're friends,” he answered. They were. They are. Hopefully best friends at some point. Himchan was worth every second of Yongguk's time and more.

Changwook and Eunjoo smiled widely. “Oh, that is so good to hear,” Changwook smiled.

“He hasn't had a friend since the fifth grade,” Eunjoo continued.

“Mom,” Himchan groaned.

“No, your cousin and his best friend do not count,” Eunjoo told her son.

“They're family,” Changwook nodded.

“But we're so glad you two have found each other,” Eunjoo smiled.

“Channie tells us you don't have any other friends at school?” Changwook asked.

“Because you sleep all the time,” Eunjoo continued without letting Yongguk answer.

“He says you look cute when you do that.”

“How do you study?”

“Was it something about studying at night instead?”

“That isn't very healthy, is it?”

“But we're glad the history project has brought you two together.”

“History does wonderful things, don't you think?” Eunjoo smiled dreamily into thin air.

“Do you bake?” Changwook asked, and silence finally found its way to the table.

“I... haven't really tried,” Yongguk answered, feeling overrun by questions he didn't even have time to answer.

“That's a shame, Channie loves cake,” Eunjoo told him, winking at her son. “I got you, son,” she stage whispered.

Now Yongguk was really confused.

“Mom, dad,” Himchan started. “As the esteemed parents of this household, I suggest you pull your act together, and move it out of town, as it is not only immensely annoying but also making our guest uncomfortable,” he told them, with an air about him as if he was talking to a court.

“Your suggestion has been noted,” Changwook replied, in the same tone. “However, it must be taken up to a vote in the court. All who favor this suggestion, say 'aye'.”

“Aye,” Himchan said immediately, but Eunjoo remained quiet with a mischievous grin on her face. “Say 'aye',” his friend told him quietly.

“Aye?” Yongguk asked more than said.

“All against, say 'nay',” Changwook continued, followed by both him and his wife saying 'nay'. “Your suggestion has been denied.”

“What? It was a clear tie!” Himchan protested. Yongguk looked around and gave up. He ate his lasagna. Which was really really good. The best he ever tasted.

“No,” Eunjoo grinned. “Our votes weigh more, as we are the adults.”

Yongguk ate more lasagna, as they began discussing whether or not the sudden weighted voting was fair or not. It was really very good. He might even be able to eat all of it, just because of the exquisite taste. Usually he didn't eat a lot, though he didn't eat too little either. This lasagna made him question what he had been doing with his life beforehand, missing out on this. Sure, he had never met Himchan's parents before, but if Changwook always cooked like this, he was ready to beg his friend to bring him over for more.

“-clearly like him,” Changwook said, as Yongguk returned from his lasagna thoughts. He looked at Himcan in confusion, but said person was very red, blushing furiously. Was it anger? No. Maybe it was too hot in here?

“Sorry I zoned out for a moment,” Yongguk apologized. “What are we talking about?”

“We're talking about how you're clearly Channie's type,” Eunjoo explained. Himchan looked like he wanted to sink through the floor and never see his parents again.

Yongguk was confused. “Of course I'm his type. Otherwise we wouldn't be friends,” he said slowly. “People don't become friends with people that aren't their type.”

They all looked at him with weird expressions.

“You're very right,” Himchan interrupted the silence, before glaring at his parents.

They were ignoring it. Instead they were looking at Yongguk, who wished he had stayed with his lasagna thoughts and the way it tasted on his tongue. So simple, yet so good.

“You are adorable,” Eunjoo announced and took a bite of her lasagna.

“We approve,” Changwook nodded.

“Though you need to put more work into it,” Eunjoo told Himchan.

“Please shut up,” Himchan practically begged his parents, who laughed and high-fived.

Yongguk didn't get any of this. However, at the look on his friend's face, he leaned over slightly, and took Himchan's hand. With a light squeeze, he hoped to say that it was okay. His friend smiled at him thankfully, still looking a little red. He really was beautiful. In every way.

“So, Yongguk,” Eunjoo interrupted their moment, look all types of curious. “Since you're interested in music, what genres do you lean towards?”

With a smile, Yongguk answered, Himchan pitching in as well, while two adults asked question after question. They weren't that bad. However, they did seem to be brilliant at teasing people. Their son gave back as good as they gave, so he wasn't worried. It seemed like a really good and trusting relationship they had. Strong enough to tease each other so much, with smiles all over. Throughout dinner, he found himself looking at his friend and the way he shined. He never really looked this way at school, though he did get glimpses of it when they were together. This happiness. He hoped Himchan never lost it. It was too beautiful for that.

It was kind of weird, to keep on calling his friend beautiful though, wasn't it? He didn't know. Daehyun and Youngjae called each other beautiful and many other things, but this wasn't like Daehyun and Youngjae. Himchan and him were just friends. The hope of it developing to become more, to become best friends, was strong in his chest though.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So it didn't take me as long to update this time? Yaaay!  
> But yeah, it will probably take a little longer to update next time around, as I'm starting uni on Friday.  
> Which I've heard is a lot of work (which I know is a lot of work).  
> So uhm, that's all from me this time around  
> Peace out (^_^)v


	12. Chapter 12

“I don’t think I’ve ever eaten as much as I have today,” Yongguk groaned to his friends on the screen. “I feel stuffed.”

“It’s a good thing to happen every once in a long while,” Youngjae smiled.

“I want lasagna too,” Daehyun said, sounding as pathetic as they came. “Why didn’t I get lasagna today?”

“You got to eat a giant hamburger in the presence of me, what are you complaining about?” Youngjae replied, a slight smirk on his face.

“I want to have lasagna while in your presence as well,” Daehyun whined. “That ‘giant hamburger’ wasn’t that big.”

“It was as big as my face!” Youngjae exclaimed.

“Yeah, I saw the post on facebook,” Hyosung butted in. “Youngjae’s got a very valid point. It was a giant hamburger.”

“But JaeJae’s face is so small, that it doesn’t take much,” Daehyun argued.

“My face isn’t that small!”

“Yes, it is, remember when we measured it with all the burgers we found on our school trip? The conclusion was that your face is small,” Daehyun pointed out.

Yongguk could vaguely remember that. It had been around a year ago, when something odd had started being weird with the two boys. There had been a constant push and pull between them, that Yongguk and Hyosung had picked up on. Hyosung said it was around that time they realized that they liked each other as more than friends.

He smiled to himself as the couple argued about the size of Youngjae’s head, while Hyosung commented occasionally. They had been so obvious with their flirting, yet neither of them had dared to take a step towards becoming more. Youngjae was convinced Daehyun didn’t like him that way and vice versa. It was taken straight out of one of those teen romance novels, but it had been very real nonetheless. Yongguk had spent hours upon hours with Hyosung, trying to convince the one or the other to make a move.

In the end, it had been Daehyun (with endless encouragement) who had taken the step, and Youngjae had taken the step with him. The two moved slowly and steadily with their relationship in some aspects and fast in others, but it worked for them. That was the important part.

“Okay you two, it’s time to stop,” Hyosung interrupted, pulling Yongguk back to the conversation. Both Youngjae and Daehyun wore matching challenging expression. “We need to hear the next chapter in Yongguk’s story,” she continued, and their expressions changed to excitement.

“Oh yeah!” Daehyun exclaimed. “Yongguk! Tell!”

“Tell what?” Yongguk felt attacked, suddenly being the center of attention out of nowhere.

“Tell us about your evening at Himchan’s place,” Youngjae clarified.

“I just told you?”

“Not the lasagna part, everything else,” Hyosung explained.

“Oh, well, Himchan’s parents are really nice,” Yongguk replied. “They were energetic and teased Himchan a lot.” He went on explaining how there had been a lively mood all throughout dinner, how Himchan teased back as good as he got, and the way they had welcomed him with open arms. He had almost felt like a part of the family, even though it was his first time there. The warmth he had felt had been genuine.

He told them how he had seen Himchan without a hoodie for the first time, and that he looked good underneath the hoodie, but he didn’t linger on the subject. The odd feeling, he had had was something to examine on his own later. It felt private. So he went on to tell them how Himchan had done his best to make him feel comfortable, while still joking around with his parents. On one side, he had sensed that Himchan was embarrassed about his parents, but on the other side, it had been like he was proud of being part of their family.

“Wow, you’re being awfully observant today,” Daehyun interrupted.

“Oh, come on,” Yongguk sighed. “I’m not completely oblivious as you make me seem.”

“Uhm, yes you are,” Youngjae agreed with his boyfriend.

“I’m sorry, Yongguk, but you’re out numbered,” Hyosung grinned.

Yongguk sighed again. Why was he friends with these people again?

“Think of it this way, Harry Potter was oblivious to a lot of stuff as well, but that doesn’t take away the fact that he was smart and saved the world from Voldemort,” Youngjae smiled.

“So, you’re saying I can still save the world?” Yongguk asked.

“No, humanity is doomed,” Youngjae waved him off. The rest of them laughed, Daehyun exclaiming ‘amen’.

“No what I’m saying is, despite obliviousness, you are still important,” Youngjae explained after they had stopped laughing.

“Thank you,” Yongguk smiled. This had turned into an oddly cheesy moment.

“However!” Youngjae added. “I will say you should work on noticing stuff,” he grinned.

“The truths thou speaketh today, darling of mine,” Daehyun chuckled.

“That reminds me!” Hyosung exclaimed. “There’s a showing of Richard III coming to my city soon! It’s amateur, but guess who is going!”

Yongguk chuckled as they started discussing theatre and the Shakespeare play in question. He could barely remember it, but Hyosung was happy to remind him.

 

Sunday afternoon, Himchan was back in Yongguk’s living room, the two of them chatting away happily. They had finally finished their project, and Himchan was staying to talk to Yongguk. He felt relieved somehow, yet it also felt natural. Like he had been a tiny bit worried that his friend would leave once the project was over and that it had all only been for the sake of the project. However, he knew that it wasn’t. Himchan wouldn’t have done all those things, talked so easily, confided so much in him, if they weren’t friends.

It was nice, like all things Himchan were nice.

Yongguk honestly felt like every day he came up with new realizations about Himchan and how much his friend meant to him. It was a bit weird, but it all just felt so new, and Himchan was one of kind. He felt like he could use several lifetimes getting to know the other and discovering new things, both about Himchan and himself.

His friend also encouraged him in his dreams, from a whole other perspective than his other friends. He kept saying they’d do things together when possible, where his other friends encouraged him from the sidelines. It was incredibly heartwarming and just nice to know that their dreams had an overlap, and that they could actually follow each other on that road.

It was nice, like all things Himchan were nice. Nice in all these different nuances and colors, which just made everything more wonderful. Yongguk couldn’t remember a time he had been this kind of happy. Right now, in this moment, where Himchan was expressing his adoration of Pink Floyd’s music, Yongguk was incredibly happy. He found himself engaging in the conversation more than he had in other conversations. It wasn’t that he didn’t talk, it was just that he was usually the quiet one in a conversation, but now he felt like he had more to say. He felt safe enough to say it too, which was quick in relation to his other friends.

There was just something about Himchan. Some great, comfortable, nice, beautiful thing. He found himself noticing how his friend had proper smiling wrinkles when he laughed, and how his eyes shone with happiness. It was like he was cataloging everything about Himchan, so that he’d have it for later when the other went home.

Yongguk’s stomach grumbled, interrupting their conversation. Himchan laughed and suggested something to eat, which Yongguk was quick to agree with. He hadn’t had breakfast yet, finding he didn’t have time before his friend came over.

“So, I’m guessing ramen?” Himchan asked, as they went into the kitchen.

“You know me well.”

Himchan chuckled. “It doesn’t take long knowing you have a love like no other for ramen,” he replied.

“True,” Yongguk chuckled along. He couldn’t deny that. They resumed an easy conversation, while they found the things they needed and made the ramen. There was some kind of domestic bliss over it. They simply fit well together, like it was meant to be. It was almost like…

“Yongguk?” Himchan’s voice interrupted before he could think the thought through.

“Yeah?”

“You zoned out for a moment there.”

“Oh sorry, I was just thinking,” Yongguk felt his face warm a little. He hadn’t meant to zone out.

Himchan waved it off. “What were you thinking about?” he asked

“Oh, nothing,” Yongguk answered. His friend raised an eyebrow at him, clearly not believing him and urged him to tell. “It’s nothing,” he said again.

“I don’t believe you,” Himchan replied, with a smile.

“Fine, I’ll tell you,” Yongguk sighed and his friend’s smile turned wider. “It’s just that you’re really nice to be around,” he told the other, feeling his cheeks heat up.

“Oh,” Himchan looked slightly surprised, his face turning a little red. “Thank you, you’re nice to be around too,” he continued, smiling softly and fondly. Yongguk could feel his stomach doing a flip at the sight of it. His friend truly was beautiful.

For a while they just looked at each other. Yongguk got lost in his friend’s face, and the way his lips were turned upwards in that soft way, just showing his cute bunny teeth. The way his eyes shone with fondness and this light that never disappeared. The way his cheeks rounded, and the small wrinkling beside his eyes that only showed when he smiled. If he could, he would like to keep this moment, where Himchan looked like this, forever.

Himchan’s smile turned a bit wider and brighter, as he chuckled once more. “This suddenly turned cheesy,” he said.

Yongguk smiled back and nodded. In his stomach and heart, he felt something move, but he didn’t want to examine it now. He would do that later. “It’s your fault,” he said instead.

“How is it my fault?” Himchan asked, looking mock offended.

“You were the one who insisted on me telling you what I was thinking of.”

“Well I like cheese,” his friend replied with a smile and a wink. Yongguk chuckled and rolled his eyes. Himchan really was one of a kind. The best kind.

“Hey, I’ve been wondering,” Yongguk began. “And you don’t have to answer, but why do you always wear a hoodie?”

His friend turned silent and a frown replaced the smile on his face. “You don’t have to answer,” Yongguk told the other, feeling it was a sensitive subject.

Himchan shook his head. “It’s fine, but it’s a bit… hard to talk about,” he explained.

“If you don’t want to talk about it…” Yongguk kept the option of leaving the subject alone open.

“I told you I was bullied at my previous school, but I didn’t tell you exactly what,” Himchan started and Yongguk nodded. “Well I was bullied about my weight and how ugly I am, that was part of it anyways,” he said, his voice trembling slightly.

Yongguk’s head snapped back in surprise. How could anyone bully his friend about that? Himchan was one of the most beautiful beings Yongguk had ever had the pleasure to meet. Then the way his friend had worded the sentence sunk in. Was Himchan still affected by what they had said?

“I’d be lying if I told you it didn’t affect me anymore, which is kinda why I wear a hoodie,” Himchan told him, looking down at the table. He looked sad and vulnerable.

“They were lying assholes,” Yongguk told his friend. “You’re perfect.”

Himchan looked up at him with a half-smile. “No one is perfect, Yongguk,” he replied.

Yongguk smiled back softly. “That’s where you’re wrong. You’re perfect in every imperfection you have,” he told Himchan. “You’re perfect as you are.”

His friend smiled and looked down into the table, and Yongguk could see his ears go red. When he looked up again, his smile was brighter. His eyes shone even brighter, and there was that fondness again, which Yongguk would happily drown in.

“Thank you,” Himchan said with sincerity. Yongguk hoped that meant the other had taken it to heart, for his friend was indeed perfect as he was.

That night, as it was turning into morning and Yongguk went to sleep, his thoughts went back to Himchan’s smiles and the way he laughed. With warmth in his heart and a thought at the tip of his tongue, he fell asleep smiling. Himchan was indeed perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I'm back with another update.
> 
> University has been busy so far, and I don't see it slowing down immediately. However, it shouldn't be as overwhelming soon ^^
> 
> Hope you enjoyed this update and have a nice day/night/whatever ^^
> 
> Peace out (^_^)v


	13. Chapter 13

“Yongguk,” Himchan’s voice called for him, rousing him from his slumber. With great displeasure, he opened his eyes and looked around. His friend sat at the seat in front of him, smiling softly. He wouldn’t mind waking up to that sight more often. “It’s the lunch break,” Himchan told him.

“Mmkay,” he replied and tried to take his mind back to the world of the waking. He had had a really nice dream, but he couldn’t remember what it was about. All he knew was that it left him with some sort of longing in his chest. Himchan in front of him made it better though. As if what he was longing for was eased by the other’s presence.

“I was thinking about the plan as well,” his friend told him.

Yongguk sat up straighter. “The plan?”

“The one from yesterday.”

“Oh yeah,” Yongguk nodded. He remembered now. They had made a plan yesterday, that would hopefully work. “What about it?”

“Do you think it’ll work?”

“Yeah, why shouldn’t it?”

“I just don’t want something to go wrong,” Himchan worried and started chewing on his bottom lip.

“It’s going to work,” Yongguk tried soothing the other, wanting to stop his friend from chewing on his lips, but didn’t know if physically stopping it was an appropriate move.

“I still have a bad feeling,” Himchan said, his frown turning deeper.

“Do you want to switch places?”

Himchan nodded. “Can we?”

“If it makes you feel better,” Yongguk tried to smile reassuringly, but now he was getting worried. He knew Himchan was more than capable to take care of himself, but that didn’t make him feel better about leaving him in the lion’s den.

A chuckle interrupted his worrying. “Now you’re the one chewing your lip,” Himchan smiled, but there was still a worried wrinkle between his eyebrows. For a while they just looked at each other, and Yongguk mapped out his friend’s face once more, committing how it looked to memory. The worried wrinkle smoothed out, and instead he looked as lost in thought as Yongguk was. He wondered what the other was thinking about. Was he thinking about Yongguk, as Yongguk thought about Himchan?

Was he wondering how he had gotten so lucky to know someone like this? Was he wondering how it was possible for someone to be so beautiful, with all these quirks of manner? Probably not, but he’d like to think Himchan appreciated him as well. He seemed like he did, what with the way he acted so freely around him. It was a nice thought, that he might be to Himchan what Himchan was to him.

It sent a rush of something through his stomach. Something fond and thrilling. It was different, but he had felt this feeling grow stronger and stronger over the weeks he had known the other. He felt like he had a name for it, but somehow it didn’t seem to fit and he didn’t quite believe it. So, he didn’t try to name it and pushed the name away, reveling in the feeling instead.

A couple of giggling girls entered the room, both of them turning to look at their classmates.

“I’m surprised, Himchan,” one of the girls said. “Talking with the sleeper.” Yongguk looked at his friend, confused.

“I’m surprised you haven’t mentioned anything before now, Sooyeon,” Himchan replied back with a relaxed smile. Not the same relaxed smile that he gave to Yongguk, this one had something tense over it, as if he was hiding.

The girls giggled once more. “I didn’t want to interrupt the honeymoon,” she replied, as the other girl got something from a bag. Yongguk was still confused. Honeymoon?

“Hasn’t stopped you before,” Himchan smiled back. Yongguk felt like there was something he was missing, but he didn’t know what. Also, was this about the two of them and their friendship? Because what had a honeymoon to do with their friendship?

“I decided to be nice,” the girl answered with the sweetest, most fake innocent smile Yongguk had ever seen. The other girl giggled and the two of them were off, leaving them an empty classroom once more.

“What was that about?” Yongguk asked.

“The rumor mill,” Himchan answered.

“That’s very vague.”

“It was meant to be,” his friend grinned.

“You’re hiding something,” Yongguk frowned.

Himchan chuckled. “Nope, I’m just teasing you,” he said. “Some people believe that we are dating,” he explained.

Yongguk’s head snapped back. “What? Why?”

“We spend a lot of time together, after neither of us spent time with anyone really.”

“Is that reason enough?”

“We’re in high school, of course it is,” Himchan chuckled. Yongguk couldn’t help but smile along. That was indeed true. Him and Himchan together like that. That would be… well… he didn’t know actually. It wouldn’t be bad. It wouldn’t be weird. It would actually… but then again, they were friends, good friends, maybe best friends in some way. This other thing wasn’t something to think about.

 

“I heard something odd today,” Yongguk told his friends that evening.

“Something odd?” Hyosung asked, interested. They had just gone through Youngjae’s math assignment with him. He was usually right, but he liked to have an extra set of eyes to go through what he had done anyways.

Yongguk nodded. “Yeah, apparently there’s a rumor that Himchan and I are dating.”

The three faces on his screen started smiling widely, with a weird glint in their eyes. It was creepy how similar they could look, despite only two of them meeting on a regular basis.

“Why are you guys smiling like that?” he asked.

“Is it really that odd?” Daehyun smiled, sounding like it really wasn’t odd.

“Yes?” Yongguk answered, suddenly very unsure.

“You sound unsure,” Hyosung smirked.

“Yeah, because you guys all look like that! I haven’t even thought of Himchan in that way,” Yongguk defended himself. “Sure, he may be one of the greatest people out there and he’s kind of beautiful, but that doesn’t mean anything.”

Daehyun and Hyosung started chuckling, while Youngjae just shook his head at him. “Kind of beautiful?” Youngjae asked.

“Okay, not just kind of,” Yongguk gave him. “But that doesn’t mean we’re dating.”

“Do you hear yourself?” Daehyun asked with as much softness as he could with his chuckling.

“Yes,” Yongguk replied shortly. He didn’t think of Himchan that way.

“But the way you-” Daehyun started.

“Leave it, Dae,” Youngjae interrupted. “We shouldn’t mess with these things.”

“Mess with what?” Yongguk asked. Himchan and him? He suddenly felt out of the loop.

“Mess with what happens,” Youngjae answered, but Yongguk still didn’t get it. Was this about Himchan and his relationship? They couldn’t know something that he didn’t know again, could they? They hadn’t indicated anything before this.

“You haven’t somehow spoken with Himchan, have you?” he asked warily, just in case.

All three of them gave him a raised eyebrow and a look of confusion.

“Clearly not, sorry,” he said. “It’s just that this almost feels like last time when you figured out the whole bullying thing and Himchan protecting me.”

“Oh Yongguk, it’s not,” Hyosung answered with a small smile. “We only have some suspicions about your side of your friendship with Himchan,” she continued.

“What?” he asked.

“Just that we might be getting replaced,” Hyosung replied with a wink.

“The horror!” Daehyun cried out dramatically. “Our Yongguk is leaving us! Jae-baby, you must come save me from the ripping of my heart!”

Youngjae snorted. “Save yourself, I got home from your place, literally 2 hours ago,” he replied.

“So cruel,” Daehyun sobbed and clutched his heart, which led to Yongguk breaking out into laughter along with Hyosung. Youngjae looked like he tried to keep his laughter back, but didn’t quite succeed at not looking amused.

“You guys are a bunch of idiots,” Yongguk grinned.

“Pot and kettle, Yongguk,” Hyosung grinned back.

 

Yongguk trudged to school slowly, feeling like he could fall asleep on the street. It was cold outside, but he was bundled up in a warm jacket and a scarf, so it didn’t bother him much. However, he missed the sun that was hidden behind gray clouds at the moment. It felt like it had been forever since he had had a nap in the sun. Nothing beat sleeping in the sun, feeling it’s warmth on his face, letting it kiss his cheeks. Though there was a long way to go yet, he looked forward to spring, when it came back and he could fall asleep in their backyard once more, without getting sick.

His phone vibrated in his pocket, pulling him out of his daydreams of sun and warmth.

‘Today is the day. You ready?’ it said. It was from Himchan.

Suddenly he was very awake. Was today the day? He felt a nervous twist in his gut. He thought it wasn’t until later? Unlocking the phone, he typed back, asking if it really was time already. Without noticing it, he had stopped up and looked at his screen anxiously. Himchan was typing.

‘Yeah, I’m bringing the USB as promised’

Yongguk’s eyebrows raised themselves. USB? What USB? When did they ever talk about a USB? Did Himchan change the plan?

“Yongguk!” Himchan’s voice interrupted his thoughts, and he turned around to find the boy walking towards him. “Good morning,” he greeted him as the boy reached him.

“What’s this about a USB?” Yongguk asked, still very much confused.

“Uh, we decided it would be better to bring it just in case, Yongguk,” Himchan answered, sounding confused himself.

“When?”

“This weekend?”

“But what do we need it for? It has nothing to with the plan,” Yongguk was feeling like he was missing out on something. Did they really decide on using a USB? And for what?

Himchan chuckled. “Yongguk, it’s for our presentation,” he told him.

“Ohhh,” Yongguk nodded. That cleared things up.

“You must really be tired this morning,” Himchan grinned and started walking towards school.

“Yeah,” Yongguk sighed as he followed. “I fell asleep at 5.”

“So you’ve gotten what, almost 2 hours of sleep?”

“Sounds accurate,” Yongguk yawned for good measure. Now that he knew it wasn’t the Day, he could relax again.

“I never thought I’d be saying this, but go to sleep as soon as we get to school,” Himchan told him. “I need you in your prime condition for this presentation.”

Yongguk chuckled. “Why so eager?”

“My mom will want to know how it went, and I’d hate to say it went bad,” his friend told him. “After all those years of bad history jokes, it should pay off somehow.”

“True,” Yongguk grinned. “How come you’re coming this way, by the way?” he asked. Himchan could take this route to school, but there was another short route parallel to this one.

“Ah, you caught me,” his friend sighed deeply, and looked up to the sky dramatically. “I was hoping you didn’t notice my choice of route.”

“Do tell,” he urged the other on, grinning. Himchan was going to get on with his other friends like a wildfire, he could see it already.

“Well, my dear friend, I found myself parched from the lack of your company, ‘twas horrendous!” Himchan told him with expressive hand movements. Yongguk shook his head and chuckled. Yeah, Himchan was going to get along with his other friends really well.

Forgetting his tiredness for a while, Yongguk laughed at his friend’s silly antics as they walked the rest of the way to school. It was weird how Himchan could do that, when he had been close to falling asleep on the street just moments before. When he was with his friend, it was almost like the world faded away. It didn’t disappear, it just became background noise that didn’t matter, because Himchan was making him laugh. The look on his friend’s face was out of this world as well, which just made Yongguk focus even more on the other.

It was a unique experience and he kind of felt they were best friends already, even though they hadn’t known each other for that long. It was nice. It was exhilarating, it was-

“I see the lovebirds have decided to come to school,” a voice called loudly, which made Himchan stop mid-sentence. The two of them turned around to find the jackets standing at the school gates. They looked threatening and angry.

“What do you want?” Himchan sighed, as if the jacket was nothing more than a bothersome fly. Yongguk looked around. Almost all of the students were inside, and the bell would call them to class soon.

“I want to give you what you deserve,” the jacket smirked.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Surprise!!! I'm giving you an update already!
> 
> I don't have a lot to say, but I hope you have a nice night/day
> 
> (that rhymed, haha)
> 
> Peace out (^_^)v


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